


Greed Of The Void

by orphan_account



Category: VIXX
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2019-01-24
Packaged: 2019-08-28 06:32:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 28,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16718157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: In a different solar system is a galaxy with nine planets and two suns. All planets have lived in peace for hundreds of years, but as the planet Zork is close to destruction and death due to lack of resources, the Emperor takes extreme measures to make sure of their survival. Attacking Hecury, the oldest and richest planet in the entire solar system.As the fear of the war keeps growing among the civilians in the capital,  Lee Hongbin never expected he would one day help the Emperor of Hecury. He was perfectly comfortable in his mountain home, away from the war, living a relatively quiet life in peace with his animals but nothing ever comes easy. In the ongoing war between the two planets, with nothing seeming to stop it, his life changes in the event of a single night. After that, he is no longer just animal keeper Lee Hongbin. He is much more than.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place in a world I created for an original story of mine. My original story and this fanfic will not overlap, this fanfic will take place about 100 years before. It's a very complex world with a large history, but this will mainly focus on the romance between the VIXX members and the war between Zork and Hecury. I hope this will be enjoyable. On my twitter is a thread, showing images of what each VIXX member looks like and giving some small background information of Zork and Hecury, plus the other planets in chronological order.
> 
> Link: https://twitter.com/Zezeidk/status/1066096150305021955

Under the heating suns, two of them to be exact, one slighter larger than the other, rides a man dressed in earth-colored clothing. Wrapped around his body, the fabric hugs him close, wrapping around his head and gloves, only exposing his fingers to the heat. During this time of day, it is too warm to be outside for a mundane, but the man had to. Under the hood and many layers of fabric is a face of what some would consider beautiful. A sharp sculptured man, dark eyes, a straight nose, and light blue messy hair. The man is known by the name of Lee Hongbin. He is a simple mundane, but if he could, he can travel into the capital and receive a job as either a prostitute or an escort, if he is very lucky a model or background actor. 

One of his animals had escaped from it’s fenced in area. He is riding on his Dhernes, who can withstand the heat. It’s a large, four-legged creature, covered in sand-colored fur, a short tail, and horns in the front of its forehead. The creature’s name is Geno and is nearly double the size of the man riding on the back of it. 

Around its neck is a thick rope, going back and latching around the runaway creature. A Nihneh. The creature is smaller than Geno but more dangerous. Walking on the hooves, on two legs, the arms being much shorter and in claws, long hair tail and a thick mane. Large muscles pumping around its body and a mouth opening at one side of the face, going all the way to the other side, with sharp teeth. Sharp enough to rip out any organs of any creature. It has features similar to that of a horse. It is walking calmly behind Geno and the man, showing no signs of anger.

Hongbin looks up at the dark blue sky, slowly moving his vision towards the suns. His goggles protect his eyes from any form of damage he would else receive from being outside. Midday is soon over, meaning the time of when mundane and other weak creatures would be able to be outside again. He could have waited until Midday was over till he went outside to find the Nihneh, but there are many hunters in the mountains. Hunters that would love to get Nihneh meat or it’s soft fur. As they reach the end of the mountain, the two-floor roundhouse comes into view. It is built of a special material, native to Hecury. Close by is much larger barns and fenced off areas with animals of all different types roaming around. 

Geno walks over to the house and Hongbin jumps down, groaning as he lands on the ground. He takes off the rope around its neck and starts pulling at the robe for the Nihneh to follow along with him, guiding it over to the area with the other Nihneh. Hongbin grew up with animals. His parents were both animal trainers, so it was only natural for him to become one as well. He opens the fence, fast, the metal burning hot against his exposed fingers and pushing the Nihneh inside of it, taking off the rope around its neck in the process.

As soon as he closes the fence again, it starts running around, the four other Nihneh’s running after it and them all roaring as they slide across the ground, throwing up the dirt and dust. He stands for a few minutes and just looks at them running around. It saddens him, knowing that most of the creatures he has here are hunted and slaughtered, making so their population is lessening. He even has a few that are close to extinct, only a few hundred left and him having just five or six of them.

Geno comes up behind him and nudges his head against his back, pushing him forward and nearly making him stumble. Hongbin turns around towards the animal with an angered expression, yet the animal leans down and nug him carefully on his arm with its snout. It’s worried for Hongbin having to stay out for too long during Midday and the strong exposed sun. His fingers are hurting and if he doesn’t put medicine on them soon, they will be permanently damaged. 

He pets Geno before running over to the house, running up the stairs up to the terrace and inside the house, pulling off the many layers of fabric. He sighs out of relief, throwing it on the floor and fall down onto the couch, the couch letting out a loud creak. A small sound comes from the window and Hongbin leans his head towards Toto, a cat-like creature but half of its body and the whole tail is that of a peacock, peacock feathers falling down over the edge of the window. Toto stares at him with large yellow eyes and pointy ears.

He claps on the cushion next to him, Toto jumping all the way over from the window edge to the couch, curling up next to him.

“It’s only a little after Midday and I’m already exhausted, Toto,” he says, petting the animal behind its ear. “Maybe I’ll go to sleep early again tonight. Been a while since I’ve slept so much.”

Hongbin lives alone. His only company is the animals and the few times hunters or customers come by. The nearest village is 40 kilometers away and he normally only goes there if he is running out of resources such as food or water. His only form of transportation is Geno. He received Geno when he was young and trained him to be obedient and well-behaved. Dhernes are very loyal to their owners, it’s a longtime friendship. Both of his parents are too old to work as animal trainers anymore, they moved into the village to settle down and enjoy the rest of their lives.

His day mostly consists of taking care of the animals, making sure they are all healthy and feed properly. And sometimes, yell at the hunters to fuck off when they come too close to some of the more exotic animals. The way he finds animals is going into the mountains or nearby forest, searching for animals that might have been shot but not completely dead yet. He helps them heal, sometimes even having to bring them home to his house to make sure they can survive well enough. He will keep them if he notices a large amount of that creatures death in the area.

As the day passes, he goes outside after Midday has passed, feeding all the creatures and caring for them in any way he has to. Brushing them or even training them. He has a small creature, a four-legged animal with long ears, large eyes and large wings on its back, including a long tail. It has a beautiful white and black fur and is one of Hongbin’s favorite creatures. It’s a very small and beautiful creature, herbivore and hurts no one.

But the hunters are still killing them for its wings, and last hunting season, they killed so many that their species has decreased by thousands. Hongbin only has one, but he hopes he can another one, for them to breed and help in reproducing their population.

He pulls on the large handling glove, going all the way up to his elbow. Holding out his arm, the creature, Kanin, jumps up on the glove, all four paws latching on. He walks out onto the field as the Kanin spread its wings, feeling the wind. As a good wind comes, it jumps again and takes off, flying up high. He does not fear it flying away, he has let it out to fly free many times before, it always returns back home.

The Kanin flies all around the sky, swaying around in circles. Hongbin smiles at the sight. Seeing all the creatures, being able to be free and just fly or run around. He wishes he could fly or run free as them. He is no more than a mundane, a weak creature with no power, a creature who has to stay inside during a certain time at the day. He was never respected, always thrown in the back of the mind and is what someone would call part of the minority or as most people would call him, a weakling.

A gunshot fires through the air, and the Kanin immediately starts diving for the ground. He would scream if he could, but instead, he just set in a run towards the falling Kanin. It falls fast down towards the ground and he fears the worst, it hits the ground and dies or if it’s already dead from the gunshot. Before it reaches the ground, the Kanin spread its wings and flies up again, flying fast over to the safety of its house. Hongbin breathes heavily as he turns around in circles searching from the source of the gunshot.

A few men’s laughter catches his attention. Three different types of creatures are standing at the edge of his lot, large hunting guns over their shoulders, one of them smoking. They are all laughing. Hongbin grit his teeth, marching over to them, crawling over the fence.

“I didn’t hit it, maybe just touched it a little,” one of the men says as he puts the safety back on the hunting gun.

“Next time-“

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing!” Hongbin yells at them as he approaches them.

“Hunting, what else would we be doing?”

“Don’t hunt on my grounds! You nearly killed my Kanin,” Hongbin says, trying to sound scary, clenching his fists.

They look confused at each other, before returning back to looking at him again. “It didn’t look like yours. It was flying free, just so happened to be above your grounds. It didn’t look like it had an Owner Brand.”

Owner Brand, a form of necklace, choker or brand that identifies the creature to its owner. Hongbin grit his teeth again. He has none of his creature branded, meaning none of them are technically his, he is not their owner but the creatures themselves think so.

“I don’t care. You shoot inside the area of my grounds, I do not tolerate that. Leave my grounds immediately and do not return.”

“Aw, calm down little mundane, you aren’t going to call the guards on us, are you?” One of the creatures says, pushing Hongbin’s shoulder with the muzzle of the rifle. He takes a step back.

“I’m tired of you coming to my grounds, annoying my animals. I bet it was also you who let lose my Nihneh.”

“As I said, there is no Owner Brand. Meaning, you are keeping wild animals in hostility, illegally,” the creature says with a smirk, taking a step forward. He is taller than Hongbin, towering over him. “You wouldn’t want the guards to take you in for mistreatment of the wildlife. Someone might give them a tip.”

He has moved his face close to him, they are only a few centimeters apart. Hongbin gulps. They will not fear or rethink about going to the guards. He never considered what he was doing was illegal, only a few times, but no one has ever really questioned it before. The creature smiles, taking out a small handgun and placing it under his jaw, placing the finger on the trigger.

“I thought so. I would keep quiet if I was you. You’re very brave considering you’re a mundane, brave but dumb. Next time I wanna hunt, and I just so happen to hunt the wild animals you are keeping here - illegally - I do not want to hear the smallest sound from you, or consequences will follow. Understand?”

Hongbin nods a small nod. The cool metal pressed against his jaw. The creature presses it closer, forcing his head back, cracking his neck. The two other creatures in the back are laughing, smirking. The gun is removed and he steps back, pointing the gun towards him again.

“See you next time, Mundane, it was lovely speaking to you.”

He lowers the gun, smirking again before leaving with the two others, walking down the mountain, following the road. He lives right by the road that goes up the mountain, but not many passes by. Only a few hikers and the hunters and it’s the hunters he’s having the most problems with. They constantly try and ruin his fences, cut them open and make the animals run out in the wild again. 

Hongbin keeps standing, staring after the creatures, his teeth pressing hard against each other to the point of his jaw hurting. Geno comes up next to him, leaning his head down so it’s near his height, looking after the hunters as well.

“I hate those men, Geno,” Hongbin says, his voice filled with anger.

Geno makes a growl in agreement. Hongbin pets his head before sighing and walking back towards the fence, walking back towards the house of the Kanin. He steps inside the house, it’s filled with many flying animals, but over in the darkest corner is the Kanin, folded together in a small ball of fur. The other flying animals are also looking at it, seemingly worried. Geno has also followed him over the fence and over to the house, standing over at the door and poking its head inside.

Hongbin walks over the glass and crawls in under the tree inside the house. He picks up the small ball of fur, hugging it close to his chest in his arm. The Kanin is shaking and is holding onto his arms. He starts comforting it, petting it over its ears - the way it likes it, rocking it back and forth. Geno lays down onto the ground, his head, and feet inside the house, the rest of his body too big to fit through the door. He checks around its body, checking its wings and it’s tail, making sure there is no damage on it, any pain. It seems to be in fine shape, just in shock. He kisses the top of the head, continuing to pet it softly and slowly.

Hopefully, those hunters will not come back anytime soon. The worst scenario would be them returning tomorrow and trying to shoot another one of the animals. The thought of any of them hurting or dying, pains Hongbin. He has them here, to keep them safe and secure. Nothing else.

Later that evening, when Hongbin is staying up late to practice reading. He never went to school and his parents only taught him basic things such as spelling his own name and counting. He never learned how to properly read. He has been teaching himself for the last couple of weeks when he was inside the city and realized he had many problems in reading anything. After that, he picked up a few simple books and trying his best to read them. It’s difficult when he isn’t even sure how they are pronounced. He sighs and closes the book, his eyes heavy.

He can barely keep his eyes open at this point. He stayed with Kanin for a while, hugging it and comforting it. When it had calmed down, he had done his last few rounds of the animals, before going back inside and eating his dinner. He lays his head down onto the table. There has been no news. The Hecury forces are currently in war with Zork, meaning many people are in distress over the conflict, scared of attacks that might happen. He would lie if he said he wasn’t, but he lives so far away from the capital, there’s no reason for any Zork guards to attack these grounds.

He listens to the news about the war every evening, waiting for some sort of update as well as the entire rest of the population is. Tonight there was nothing new, only the Emperor has returned home to the Castle again after being gone for 5 months. Maybe, soon, the two Emperors will be able to make a peace treaty and stop this useless war.

He’s just about to doze off when a large growl and roar comes from outside. Hongbin stands up in a second, suddenly feeling very awake. There’s no light outside, the suns have gone down a long time ago. Another roar and Hongbin runs outside, jumping down the stairs and into the ground. One of the Nihneh is roaring and jumping around in a restless way, crying out in loud roars. He runs over to the animal, trying to calm it down, speaking to it slowly and holding up his hands in a defensive way, showing he is no threat.

The Nihneh starts calming down a little bit but is acting up against all of the sudden, roaring at something further away. A few of the other Nihneh also start roaring, running around and waking up the other animals.

“Calm down, calm down. What’s wrong?” He asks them as a gun is loaded behind him.

He stops breathing, keeping his hands up. He does not move while the Nihneh keeps jumping around and roaring, obviously seeing the danger. He thought that after the hunters, he would be fine and that there would be nothing after that, but apparently not. There doesn’t go a day without something happening.

“Turn around,” the voice says. It’s thick and husky. Hongbin takes one step before he has turned around fully, staring back at the man, holding a gun towards him. He’s a mundane, dark crimson hair and very masculine features, stubbles and a tattoo on his neck of a compass, which in the dark is nearly invisible. He is holding onto his thigh, a very dark crimson red staining his pants, visible even in the dark. “Make them stop.”

He’s referring to the Nihneh who are still roaring loudly in the background. 

“Then put the gun down and they’ll stop,” Hongbin answers, keeping his arms high.

“How do I know you aren’t going to pull a gun on me?”

“I do not own a gun, I have never held a gun. You’re more than welcome to body search me,” Hongbin says, trying to sound as if he doesn’t care, in reality, he is shaking on the inside. Many have held guns up to him before, mostly hunters, but this guy looks to be a bounty hunter. The tattoos and the clothing are what bounty hunters look like, whenever he has seen them in the news. 

The black Nihneh seems to be angered to the point of close to attacking. It is pulling in the fence and the opening, roaring louder. The bounty hunters look fearfully at it, shaking. 

“Make it shut up!” He yells.

“If you let me move, I can calm it down.”

“Fine, do that then.”

Hongbin immediately turns around, grabbing out after the Nihneh. It’s jumping around, roaring and crying out in anger and fear. Hongbin jumps up, grabbing onto its mane, making it stop jumping, still growing heavily.

“Ssshhh, it’s okay. Nothing is going to hurt you, shhh,” he says quietly, slowly petting it and comforting it. It starts breathing slowly, finally stopped jumping and crying. The others around it have also started calming down, all staying close to the fence. Hongbin moves his hand down the animal's face, playing a little with its ears to calm it down even more.

Hongbin slowly looks over his shoulder, towards the bounty hunter who has dropped his gun down by his side, staring at Hongbin with wide eyes and confused expression, surprised by the handling of the animal. He removes his hands from the animal, clapping the side of its neck, before walking over to the bounty hunter again.

“Who are you?” Hongbin asks, staying a good distance away from the man.

“My name doesn’t matter. Where is the fastest road into the capital?”

“The capital is about 300 kilometers away. You’ll die during Midday. If you were going to the capital, you probably ended up in the worst place,” Hongbin says, crossing his arms.

“Midday?”

“Midday. The few hours of the middle of the day where the sun is too hot for any mundane to be outside. If staying outside for too long, you’ll burn up from the inside.”

“Fuck … do you have any form of something against it?”

“I should help you … the guy who just held a gun against me? What an irony.”

The man groans, tightening his grip around his thigh, the blood oozing out slowly.

“What happened to your leg?”

“I crashed my ship on the mountain, a piece of metal punctuating my leg.”

Hongbin starts walking towards him. The man does not raise his gun, not seeming to be in a defensive pose, just trying to manage the pain spreading through his leg.

“Where’s the nearest hospital?” The man asks.

“50 kilometers away. You’ll never make it. You’ll bleed out before you reach the nearest village … I’ll probably regret it later, I can patch you up.” Hongbin says, forcing it out. He definitely feels the regret of saying those words, but he can’t leave the man to death, burning under the sun. Despite the bounty hunter trying to kill him.

“You will? You know how to patch up a wound?”

“Yes, come on. Get inside. Do you need help?”

Hongbin puts his arm around his waist, the bounty hunter putting his arm around the shoulder, holding himself up. He helps him up the stairs, going inside. The lights are all on, and Hongbin stares down at the ground to make sure they don’t step on anything or fall into any furniture. He helps him over to the dinner table, helping him up on the table.

“Try and remove that pant leg so I can get a clear opening for the wound,” Hongbin says, going down into the basement, searching for the first aid kit. Upstairs, is the groans and whimpers of the bounty hunter. Hongbin still doesn’t know his name or what he even is. He just assumed the man was a bounty hunter, based on his clothing and appearance.

The first aid kit is underneath a large box, it’s old and dusty. The most essential medicine is upstairs, from when he has been bitten by one of the animals or got sunburned. Damage and safe cream is all inside of the first aid kit. He goes upstairs and the man is cutting open his pant, near his thigh where the wound must be, ripping it further up.

The wound is large and deep, also would soon be infected if exposed to much more dust or dirt. Hongbin stares at it, feeling worried. He can’t patch it entirely. He thought it would just be a small wound but it’s much deeper than expected.

“Ah fuck, I - I can clean it up but I’ll need to take you to the hospital tomorrow morning. Sit still.”

Hongbin takes out the gloves and puts them on, making a small pole in the finger but he ignores it and checks the wound. It seems not to be bleeding anymore, it seems to have just stopped bleeding as some of it is still fresh. It has jagged edges and gaping. This is becoming worse and Hongbin is surprised the man is still alive. He sets a cloth and starts moving it slowly and softly over the wound, removing all the blood surrounding the wound. It’s high up on his thigh.

The man is sitting completely still, not moving and just staring at Hongbin cleaning it, leaning back. Inside of the light, Hongbin can see a tattoo up near his chest and collarbone. This one is in colors, of flowers and leaves. It seems big and new, as the ink is still bleeding out a little bit on the skin.

“How far away did you crash?” Hongbin asks.

“I think … five kilometers away from here.”

“Can I ask your name?” Hongbin asks as he smoothes the antibiotic cream onto the skin, placing it around the skin, half a centimeter away form the opening edge. He keeps quiet, not answering the question, he just stares down at the wound as the redness slowly disappears again.

“Sanghyuk. Han Sanghyuk. I’m-“

“A bounty hunter?” Hongbin asks, looking up at him.

“Is it that obvious? Yeah, I am. I came from Ashesh, received a new job here.”

“First time meeting a bounty hunter. Ashesh?”

“The … well it’s the only existing city on Colia. It is the city where all pirates and criminals go, that includes me,” Sanghyuk says.

“Well, what are you them doing here on Hecury?”

“I’ve received a new job, a kidnapping of this man who offended one of the gang leaders really badly, like to the point of humiliating him to the end, so they send me to find him and bring him back to Ashesh.”

“Isn’t that more … kidnapping than hunting criminals for a reward?”

“I am still receiving a reward and honestly, the definition of bounty hunting is slowly becoming blurred. The only reason they picked me was that I am one of the only ones. There’s barely any bounty hunters, so it’s easy for me to get any jobs.”

“Good for you. That should do it for now, until tomorrow where I will take you to the hospital tomorrow. Have you ever ridden a Dherne?” Hongbin asks, taking off the gloves, standing up. Sanghyuk shakes his head. “You are going to have the experience of your life. There’s a bedroom over there,” Hongbin says, pointing over towards the extra bedroom on the first floor. Hongbin’s room is upstairs.

“Thank you very much. I highly appreciate it,” Sanghyuk says, standing up, still holding onto the edge of the table. It obviously still looks to be hurting. They will probably have to wake up very early to get to the hospital before it’s too late.

“Ah shit,” Sanghyuk says and Hongbin looks down at the wound. It is bleeding again. 

“Fuck, we’re going to the hospital now. Come,” he says, immediately supporting Sanghyuk by the waist, helping him out of the house and onto the ground, struggling to get down the stairs without the bleeding intensifying.

He whistles loudly and in then a few seconds, Geno comes jumping up over the fence from his fenced off area, drifting to them, stopping and laying down for them to sit up onto him. Hongbin helps Hyuk up onto the back and Hongbin in front of him.

“Hold on, this will go fast,” Hongbin says, as Geno immediately sets in a run.

Hyuk immediately grabs onto Hongbin, holding onto his shoulders. Hongbin holds onto the thick fur around Geno’s neck. He didn’t have time to put on the saddle or the bridle. Geno runs as fast as the wind down the mountain. Dhernes are fast and very jumpy animals, jumping 7 meters in one jump. It won’t take them too long to get to the hospital but in the evening, it’s always hard to get in. Only a few doctors are still there, and more than half the time, they have not specialized in whatever the patient needs.

Geno runs inside the village, no lights turned on and complete silence that is ruined by Geno running by, his feet hitting the ground loud and hard. Hongbin feels Sanghyuk’s arm move around his midriff, holding on tight. He is resting against his back and Hongbin stiffens up. He ignores the arms around his waist, the strong arms around him, just concentrating on the road ahead of them. They are close to the hospital by now when he feels Sanghyuk put his head on his shoulder.

He looks over his shoulder, onto Hyuk who has closed his eyes and breathing heavily. Hongbin takes a deep breath, as he makes Geno run faster, reaching the hospital. It’s a large light gray building, a red circle onto the wall, shining brightly out onto the parking lot. Geno comes to a halt, roaring a little as a nurse stands outside, smoking a cigarette, staring as Hongbin jumps down, helping down Sanghyuk.

“Excuse me, some help would be highly appreciated,” Hongbin yells at the nurse, who drops the cigarette and runs over to help. The nurse is an alien he does not remember the name of, but only know that it is native to Hecury and is relatively ugly with their dry skin and nearly red skin.

“What happened to him?” The nurse asks.

“He has a wound at his thigh. I tried cleaning it, but it kept bleeding. He is closing a lot of blood.”

The nurse and hongbin start carrying Sanghyuk inside the hospital.

+++

Jaehwan walks over the bridge, Templeding, over the main river, running through the entire city. He is wearing the dark blue traditional clothing, a white fabric belt around his waist and a white shirt underneath the blue. It’s late in the evening, but he promised to go and welcome Hakyeon as he arrives in the city. They have not seen each other in a long time, a few years by now, and Hakyeon is here to entertain the emperor at the Day of Embers. Hakyeon and his dancers are one of the main performers, there will be fire dancers, fireworks, the entire night will be lit by flames. 

It’s to celebrate the longest fire that has burned on the planet. Started by the first ever Emperor of Hecury and has been burning ever since. His clothing flies behind him as he walks down the steps of the large wooden red bridge. A nymph stares after him as he walks by. He makes a small hand movement and the flower petals from the nearest tree fall towards her, making her stumble into the pillar next to the bridge of shock. 

He can’t stop himself from smiling as he continues walking toward the entrance of the city. He looks down at his hand where the mark is. Straight lines, going around his fingers, circles, and triangles, moving up just above his wrist, in all black. It is very symmetric and simple, yet has such a deep meaning for warlocks. All creatures with magic have a large mark on their hand, which they receive when they turn a certain age. Warlocks have to earn theirs. Their power does not come from a book, they are not born with it, their powers come from a higher power. 

Only certain families are blessed and his family is one of them and has been blessed the longest. There are three families left of the Original Order as it was called over 500 years ago. The Original Order, a society of Warlocks, powerful warlocks who would marry each other to create an even stronger bloodline. Jaehwan’s family and two others are the only families left, all others died or disappeared. Luckily, the idea of arranged marriage or forcing two to marry each other to create a strong bloodline has disappeared.

A bird flies over his head, before flying up into the sky again. He stares up after it, flying as the wind picks up. He has lived most of his life in Hecury and he adores it, he did live for the short period of his early twenties when he lived in Ceyphus, where he met Hakyeon. Jaehwan was walking around the capital of Ceyphus, watching the architecture and all the different creatures roaming the streets. 

Even wild animals had been walking around, Mueers even wandering around in the lakes, being at peace with the civilians. A beautiful musical piece had caught his ears attention, made him wonder over in the direction of it, where a large crowd had gathered around a small stage. The stage had only been a few centimeters above the ground, but dancer on it had seemed so much more prominent. He was dancing around in the sand, a large piece of thin fabric flowed around him as he moved around gracefully. Jaehwan had first thought he was seeing an angel, but upon closer inspection, the dancer was a fairy. 

The most recognizable features about fairies are their pointy ears, the thin body builds, gorgeous features and their eyes. Either a shade of shining gold or silver. His eyes were shining a bright silver, glistening in the sun’s reflection. Jaehwan had gathered all his courage and gone up to speak to him after the performance was done, even invited him out for drinks. He wasn’t surprised when he had ended up taking the fairy home to his hotel. Fairies are charming creatures, seducing and charismatic. What surprised Jaehwan was the fact the fairy was still in the hotel room the morning after.

Most creatures in the family of the Auris, including fairies, he has been with always left before he woke up. Most only need five to three hours of sleep, but there the fairy was, in the living room of the hotel room, drinking coffee while watching the news. That was the start of their long friendship. They have never slept together since, only been close to each other, some would say as close as brothers, but they prefer as close as lovers would be.

Jaehwan reaches the main gate, where guards in large armor stand, checking every automobile coming in. Hakyeon sent a message saying they landed in the harbor in the other city. The city close to Tuham, mainly a shipping city for industrial purposes. It was so Tuham could be avoided of that, not ruin the view of the city with industrial sites. A large automobile comes in through the main gate. The guards stop it, but one of the doors open up, a fairy jumping out. Jaehwan smiles as Hakyeon comes around from the other side of the car, coming over to him with fast steps.

They embrace each other, holding onto each other for some time.

“I missed you,” Hakyeon whispers, voice filled with serenity.

“I missed you too. Welcome to Tuham. My home city,”

Hakyeon’s hair is now black instead of blond, very loose fitting clothes, in shades of black. How much he has changed since the last time they saw each other. Even Jaehwan has changed in appearance. He used to have a light brown hair color, now it has been changed to a black but still neatly styled hair, while Hakyeon is more curly and messy.

“I’ve always wanted to come here. I’ve been to so many planets, but Hecury, I do not know why I never did. Come, let’s go,” Hakyeon says, interlocking elbows, walking onto the Main Street.

“What about your things?” Jaehwan asks, looking back over his shoulder.

“The driver will drop them off at the hotel. Did you do something with your face?”

Hakyeon looks at him with narrowed eyes, inspecting it. Jaehwan shakes his head. 

“No, nothing. I might have put on a bit of weight since you last saw me. You seem to have lost a lot of weight.”

“Yes, I didn’t like how my face looked. My body looked fine, but I always thought my face looked chubby. I worked hard to get the round cheeks away.”

“Uh, well done. We can go grab some dinner, not far from here. I’ll take you to my favorite restaurant.”

“Good, I’m starving. I haven’t eaten since this morning, but nothing too heavy. My performance is in a few days and I need to be in my best shape. I am performing in front of the Emperor, Jaehwan.”

“I know you are. You haven’t stopped mentioning it since you were asked to.”

“Ohh, do I hear a tint of jealousy in your tone?” Hakyeon says, taking his hand and holding it, still walking close to each other.

“Of course not, my family has also been invited to sit near the emperor. It will not be the first time I’ve met him. My friends have even often spotted him in the streets, just wandering around with a guard or his sister.”

“I wish the Empress on Ceyphus was like that. I’ve only ever seen her on pictures, never seen her in real life.” 

“You haven’t even performed in front of her?”

Hakyeon used to be a simple street performer, but has become one of the most famous dancers on Ceyphus and is well known on other planets. He shakes his head.

“No, I’ve only performed in front of the previous Emperor and the brother and sister of the Empress. The Empress has kept very quiet and to herself ever since the coronation.”

Jaehwan can’t imagine the silence of the Emperor. He is very public and often speaks to the common people, often opening the palace to them, to walk around and see the palace for the first time in over fifty years. Apparently the previous Emperor did not approve of this change, but nevertheless, the change happened. The sun is slowly setting over the horizon and the lanterns around the bridges and sites of the street light up in a soft pink light, all by themselves. They reach the bridge, Hakyeon stretching his neck around in all directions to see everything around him.

A Mueer starts spreading it’s large wings on it’s back, flying up from the river. It hugs it’s long thin legs into its body as it flies over them and flies further up into the sky. Hakyeon stares after it, completely flabbergasted in silence, taking in the scenery. Jaehwan smiles. He has lived here for so long, he has forgotten to sometimes to just stop and stare at the environment around him. Their planet is beautiful, one of the most beautiful in the entire solar system. He often forgets that. He doesn’t remember the last time he just a minute and just looked around him, looked up at the sky and enjoyed the natural sounds of the planet.

“It’s soon gonna be dark. Better if we go to the main square,” Jaehwan says, looking around him, towards the dark alleys.

“Why?” Hakyeon asks, not looking at him and sounding far away.

“We are dealing with a lot of Alkil’s lately. Roaming in the dark alleys of the city. No one is really sure where they came from, one night a few months ago, they started running around.”

Alkil only comes out at night. They are “cursed” creatures as many would say. Creatures made of dark black and purple thick smoke, purple shining eyes, a few of them even having stars inside their smoke. They can kill but only if annoyed, but will attack many. During the day, most of them are in hiding, shaped as normal creatures, whatever creature they wish to be.

“What a terrible creature. They were also at one point in Ceyphus, terrorizing my city, even one of them crawling into my house. I hate them. Let’s get out of here before one of them come and attack us.” Hakyeon says, linking arm with Jaehwan again and hurrying down the bridge, towards the main square. 

It is also where the restaurant is. Jaehwan guides them over to the main square. It’s where the palace is, the place where the Day of Embers will also be held. It is slowly being decorated for the festival, the large fire bowls are, a scene is set up. It feels as if every year, the celebration becomes larger and greater. Many creatures come from all around the solar system to take part in the celebration. Jaehwan looks up at the stage. In a few days, he will see Hakyeon dance up there, together with his other dancers, the spotlight being on him. 

The palace stands on the largest ground on the entire planet. No other building is larger than it. It consists of large rectangular buildings, high ceilings and a large staircase going from the bottom of the square, running up till the doors, a Phoenix engraved in gold onto the dark red doors. Pillars with winged animals curling around them, protecting the entrance. Lanterns are hanging in strings from tree to tree, all shining a soft pink light, illuminating the leaves and plants under them. The sky is slowly becoming darker and darker, and Jaehwan starts guiding Hakyeon over to the restaurant. He is hard to move, gasped by the environment.

“I thought Ceyphus was beautiful. This is … I can’t find the right words,” Hakyeon says as they sit down at the restaurant.

“Yeah, it is very lovely here.”

“Lovely? Jaehwan, this is a paradise, a haven. I’ve never been a more gorgeous place. My..” He sighs out, leaning back and staring out. They sit right next to two lanterns, shining a pink light upon Hakyeon’s facial features. His silver eyes shining brighter. Jaehwan has seen many beautiful creatures, many beautiful fairies, but Hakyeon is a completely new idea of beauty. The way the light falls so perfectly upon him, it’s like looking at a painting.

“I can’t believe I will be performing over there in a few days, it’s … like I am dreaming,” Hakyeon says, looking back at Jaehwan, resting his arms onto the table.

“You’re in reality. And I can’t wait to see your performance. It will be perfect.” 

Hakyeon smiles. The sun has set completely over the horizon and darkness taking over most of the city. The main square illuminated perfectly by the lanterns. Far away over in the darkness, in the alley, stands a dark smoke figured, watching over the two men eating.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He has heard of magical creatures and their eyes, their eyes being doors to another world, but only the most powerful have. It says if you look into their eyes for long enough, you’ll see whatever world they are seeing through their eyes.

Inside the palace is a grant room, the rooms covered in gold and red fabrics around the windows and hanging from the ceiling. The entire room is built in special native materials from the mountains of Hecury, from the other side of the planet. On the walls is the pattern of the royals, a large bed, the bed frame crawling up the wall and over the ceiling. There is enough room on the bed for about five people to sleep on it, but the man on the bed is currently alone. The red curtains are drawn in front of the windows, blocking the sunlight of the new day. The doors slide open and a servant dressed in black with silver lining comes inside and a large basket with firewood. 

She does not say anything, but closes the door after her, coming further over to the bed where she believes the Emperor to be sleeping. She goes down onto her knees, opening up the small opening under the bed. Inside there is a small fire going on, heating up the bed and making sure it is warm. There is no heating system needed for it. She throws some of the firewood in under, the fire slowly becoming stronger. Wonshik can feel the heat rising underneath him. It was already strong before.

“That’s enough,” Wonshik says quietly, startling the servant. She immediately rises to her feet, bowing deeply, her body at a 90-degree angle.

“I apologize, Your Highness, I did not know you were awake. Did I wake Them up?” She asks, her voice in a whisper state. He does not know why some of the servants are scared of him, why some of them do not want to be too close to him, speak too much to him or even look at him, 

He wouldn’t define himself as an evil or strict Emperor. He would say the exact opposite. His main servant, Klux, who helps him get ready in the morning, wakes him up and brings him whatever he needs, Wonshik once asked him if he came off as intimidating. Klux answered with a yes, saying it was because of his deep voice and tattoos. Not many Emperor or Empresses of Hecury have had tattoos. He had his first one, shortly before he was coronated Emperor, the others having come sometime after.

He sits up as the servings bows again, before leaving the room, closing the door. He sighs, moving his hand through his light peach colored hair. Another reason why they are fear him is that of him being a Nephilim, a half breed between an angel and a mundane. He and his sister are the first of that kind, first that has been recorded anyway. They created the name especially for them, they grew up as a new kind of creature. A new species, some would even call it. While he does not see himself as a new type of creature, he has definitely felt special growing up.

To begin with, the civilians were skeptical of how the child between an angel and a mundane would turn out, if it would die an early death, what type of powers it would have and even what it would look like. Their father was an angel, their mother a mundane. She nearly died at both childbirths, barely surviving due to exhaustion and the angelic power both of them carried while being born. Even now, she is still weak and quiet, barely ever making an appearance to the folk when ceremonies occurred or festivals the royal family had to attend.

Many civilians threw backlash towards Wonshik and his sister. Said they were dirty half-breeds and should not be considered heir to the throne. Being dirty and disgusting mix creature and half-breeds. After many years, since how there was no harm of them, the riots against them calmed down but there’s still a large minority that stands against Wonshik being Emperor. A few days before his coronation, they held protests outside the palace. At the actual coronation, after he was crowned Emperor, he had gone outside to greet the people and they were yelling at him, insulting him still to this day.

He sighs again, pushing the memory far back into his brain. He has been Emperor for two years now, he already has a lot of experience and if he will have to continue to be Emperor for another twenty or thirty years, the hatred is something we will have to deal with. He gets up from the large bed, stretching his arms over his head, walking over to the windows to draw away the curtains. The light shines in, filling the room with a bright light as he goes over to the closet. 

He picks out a dark purple kimono and matching purple pants. It’s what he wears when it’s a relaxing day. There are preparations for the Day of Embers and a meeting with his advisor, else his day is going to be quiet. Just as the kimono drapes over his shoulders, tightening it around his waist, the door slides open and his little sister comes inside, her own kimono falling after her, over the floor. Her long light blue colored hair set half up.

“Ah, and what can I do for my lovely little sister?”

“Nothing in particular. Just wanted to see how my sweet brother was doing after returning home from Frurn and the possible peace treaty.”

She says this while walking over to the window, opening it up and turning to look at Wonshik. She smiles sweetly to him, while Wonshik is tying the belt, looking at her with a suspicious look. The smile fades and she sighs.

“I want to go out, one the night of Day of Embers, can I?”

Wonshik looks up at her, smiling slightly.

“Did you speak to Father since you’re asking me now?”

“Maybe … Father does not want me to. Saying I have to stay there, as a representative of the family. I wished to go out with my friend-”

“Woah-Woah-Woah. Friends? What friends? Any guys?” 

“Wow, you said the same thing as Father did.” She sighs, leaning her head to the side. “My girl-friends, whom I wanna hang out with. Can you please, speak to father about letting me go. No one would notice me not being there, and if they would, they would maybe even praise me for being so grounded.”

“Fine, I’ll speak to him later. But do not get your hopes up high.” He says, going over to her.

“You’re the Emperor, you should be able to do whatever you want.”

“I am the Emperor, does not mean I control Father. He and Mother still have authority over us. I will try and convince him, but again, I cannot promise anything.”

“Thank you,” she says, giving him a fast hug before running out of the room and down the hall. Wonshik looks after her, smiling. He adores his little sister. Becoming hated and bullied by a minority of their planet, made them stand together and support each other.

He walks out of the large bedroom into the hall. The halls are decorated in gold pillars with cream-colored walls, sometimes engraving into the walls of historical moments in their planet’s history. Wars they have fought, engravings of their Gods, previous rulers, anything that is important to them. Soon, the engravings of the war with Zork will also be present on the walls. The war has now been going on for a few months. They tried indulging in a peace treaty on Frurn, but the Emperor of Zork did not agree to this.

They found it unpleasant and discriminating how little of Hecury’s natural resources were shared with them. Zork is naturally dry and very hot planet, mostly composed of desserts and dry land, meaning they import most of their resources such as water and food from other planets. Hecury has a large export of such natural resources but is not selling to Zork due to old agreements that are still valid. When he tried to explain this at the treaty, the Emperor did not listen and wished to continue the war, refusing to put his forces down. Currently, all the Emperor is doing is showing off.

Showing off his weapons and firearms to scare Wonshik, to make him give in. But it does not scare him one bit. While they are showing off, Wonshik and his military advisors are preparing for the worst, prepping their army and their own weapons to make sure they withstand any form of attack. It is currently a Cold War but the real war can begin at any moment. He enters in through a grand opening, leading up to where the throne is placed. His advisor is sitting on the staircase, checking over a few papers and has not heard him enter. 

His advisor is an alien, of what someone who says looks like a mushroom and leafs folding in together to form a face and body. Wonshik hums loudly and Zyx looks up, stumbling to his feet and bowing.

“Your Highness, I did not mean to be slacking off,” he says, with somewhat of a robotic voice. Most would find it unpleasant to listen to, but he finds it soothing. He smiles and makes the man rise.

“It is alright. I do not care. What are the plans for today?” He asks, stepping up to the grand throne. It’s a wide chair made of fine wood, hand carved with phoenixes and dragons on it and seats that are surprisingly soft to sit on. He would be able to sit there for hours with no discomfort, something he sometimes does.

He sits down and Zyx comes up next to him with the papers.

“The meeting with Frurn’s Empress about the treaty, meeting with Head of Military Department and then-“

“I would like to schedule a meeting with my father. I need to speak to him.”

It’s shocking to him, when he first became an Emperor, that he needed to schedule meetings with his family, scheduling time with them in between all his other duties. He could not just go to them whenever, no, he can only meet them at a certain time and for a certain amount of time unless it’s early in the morning or late in the evening. It has been months since he had a dinner with them, but he will on Day of Embers. A grand feast, just the four of them.

“That will be able to happen at around Midday,” Zyx says and Wonshik nods.

He is a half-breed, meaning the mundane side of him is vulnerable to Midday. He can be outside during Midday but his skin will either become very red from sunburns or start to string, depending on how long. His sister is more vulnerable and can only be outside for half an hour before it's becoming too painful. Neither of them has angel wings, but Wonshik can manifest his powers to take the shape of wings, similar to his Father’s own wings. They are not as strong, he is able to fly and use them, but they are weak and easily damage, and takes a large portion of his powers.

They head for the first meeting with the Empress of Frurn. A witch. And a very powerful one. Frurn is one of the most peaceful planets in the entire solar system, having a history of no wars and taking part in none, standing for the peace and equality between creatures. All official solar system meetings take place there, in a safe and beautiful environment. There are two meeting rooms. A grand one with a place for many people to sit, around a large rectangular table low to the ground, decorated very simple to keep it professional and show no personal interested of the Emperor.

The other one is the one Wonshik prefers. An oval room with large open windows, a small dip in the middle of the ground, where a small table with tea is placed. The walls are blank except for a circular shield hanging on the wall. The openings lead out to the river in the backyard, a boat tied in at one of the entrances. Wonshik enjoys being in there when working or having private meetings.

A meeting with the Empress of Frurn will take place there. It is called the tea room, as there is always tea ready there and Wonshik enjoys sitting there in the calming environment, staring out at the pond and all the animals on the nearby land. A guard opens the doors and he enters, the Frurn Empress already standing there in a long dress, staring outside. The door behind him closes and she turns to look at him.

She is rather beautiful, a small face and short black hair, with little to no makeup. The dress is long and a light brown color with a golden belt around her waist, the markings of a witch, which consists of twirls, flowers and branch leaves, on her right hand. Wonshik bows to her, greeting her.

“Thank you for coming with such a short notice,” He says, going over to her, so they are standing next to each other.

“I had expected you to call me, I can’t say I was surprised. It is my first time in this lovely room. I must say, your palace is dashing,” she says, looking out over the pond and the few boats going around.

“Thank you. Come, let us sit and discuss, before the tea becomes cold.”

At the table is cushions of the same material as on the throne. Soft and comfortable to sit on. They sit on opposite sides, Wonshik pouring some tea up in a cup to her. The tea is dark blue with sparkles of white inside of it, seemingly mimicking the starlight on a clear night.

“Emperor Myke will not back down from the war,” she says, referring to the Emperor of Zork. “Him rejecting the peace treaty will sit horribly amongst the other rulers. This can lead to more than just a war between Hecury and Zork.”

Hecury has alliances with Skora and Boanus, while Zork only has with Thara, a planet that is as close to the destruction as Zork.

“He refuses to listen to me. I tried making an offer to him, of breaking the old trade agreement between our planets, but he refused. It would have sorted everything out. It seems as if he does not wish to stop the war.”

“Are you implying he wants more than just the resources?”

Wonshik nods. “Yes, I believe so. I offered mine 8% of our exports in natural resources, this would be enough to feed his population, but he said he wanted more. We are already offering about 30% of our natural resources to other planets in need, and that number can not increase unless it would be damaging my own people.”

She sighs, looking out through the open doors, watching as a boat passes by. A man - mundane - sits at the very front of the boat, on top of it with the oar, pushing it along the pond. He wears a large straw hat, shadowing him from the sunlight.

“How sad, that you’re such a young Emperor and is already having to deal with a war. I am impressed by your confidence and work.”

“My father raised me well, gave me training from an early age. The health of my people is my priority.”

“Of course, as it should be. I will travel to Zork, speak to Myke and see if there is any way we can compromise before this becomes out of hand. I do not want to see a war between so many planets.”

“I hope so too. But, even if you speak to him, at the first sign of attack towards Hecury, I will attack too. I refuse to let my people get hurt.” 

The Empress stares at him, her lips turning into a thin line. Her eyes are serious and there is something glinting inside of her iris. He has heard of magical creatures and their eyes, their eyes being doors to another world, but only the most powerful have. It says if you look into their eyes for long enough, you’ll see whatever world they are seeing through their eyes.

“I understand, but… consider your actions before doing so.”

She stands up. The tea has stopped brewing and the evaporation has stopped. It has gone cold. She bows as a goodbye, obviously feeling slightly offended over his decision. He knows that starting a war is not the best decision, but he sees no other choice. If Zork attack, he has no choice but to defend himself and his people. He looks down at the tea and its golden cup.

The doors open and Zyx comes inside, going over to the table.

“Your Highness, the Military General, and Advisor are waiting for you in the meeting room.” He says.

Wonshik sighs, standing up. He does not say anything. He walks to the larger meeting room, where he discusses with the Military General and Advisor, speaking of their current progress in a mobilization of their army. They have started an intense training for the soldiers, a new weapon for them to use, but only if absolutely necessary. He needs to be prepared for a war as much as possible, but without the common folks being suspicious. If they find out their safety is in danger, the uproar will begin throughout the entire planet.

After the meeting with them, he walks down towards the tea room again. He is still distressed from the meeting with the Empress. He has a relatively good relationship with all of the rulers, or so he thought. Most of them see him as inexperienced or lacking because he is new. He has only been Emperor for two years. Inside the tea room, he goes over to the opening, stepping out onto the breakwater, listening to the water move and the sound of the animals in the surrounding areas. One of the long wooden boats come over and stop in front of him.

It’s large and big enough for multiple people to fit in it, sitting all together. While the seats are not comfortable, it is romantic and very calmly. Wonshik steps into it and sits down, the man at the top of the boat, pushes the oar into the water and pushes the boat forwards. The pond is formed in a form of a circle shape, a small island in the center of the pond, small bridges leading onto it. On the island is a pavilion. In the summer and spring, when he was younger, his family and he would spend many hours there, spending a lot of time together. How times had changed drastically.

The boat sails over to a small house on the side. It’s where his parents and sister live. After becoming Emperor, he moved into the main palace, where he will stay until he finds a significant other of his own. Then he can choose to either stay in the main palace or move into one of the smaller guest houses for more privacy. There is another breakwater where his father stands. His father has long grey colored hair in a ponytail down his back, a face that resembles Wonshiks. His sister took more after their mother. His wings are tucked tightly into his body, the white feathers flowing lightly in the breeze.

His father is able to hide his wings, but it takes a certain amount of power, and as he becomes older, his power becomes weaker and weaker. Normal angels live for double the time mundane do, but he had a warlock make his lifespan shorter, to match that of his wife. He wanted to grow old and die together with her. His father sits down into the boat and the boats start sailing again.

“I have the pleasure of speaking to my son, and for how long this time?” His father asks, crossing his legs and smiling.

“You know how my schedule is. I can barely find time to go to the bathroom anymore.”

He laughs. “Ah yes, the busy times of an Emperor. Really makes you value rest and the calmness of our planet. How are you doing? With all the troubles of Zork and Myker? Your mother is worried about you.”

“I’m trying to keep it under control. Currently, he is just threatening me with his weapons, showing off, but we are also preparing.”

“War is not a great answer, Wonshik. It cost heavily and is harmful towards a planet. More resources will be used and our relationship with other planets might be damage. War is not just about the weapon, but the political and economical aspect is just as important.”

“I know, Father and I have everything under control. I know what I am doing … but this is not only what I wanted to speak to. Something … less important.”

“Of course, I doubt it can be that unimportant.”

“It’s about Jiwon-“

“Aaah,” he says, smiling widely and laughing. “She came to you and spoke about it. She wants to go out on Day of Embers.”

“I don’t see a reason why she couldn’t.”

“She’s still young, too young.”

“She is of age. Let her go out and have some fun. Let her experience Day of Embers from a different perspective.”

“She has an image to upkeep-“

“She won’t go out and sleep with half of the population. She will be outside with her friends and have some fun. It will be fine. You’re too protective of her, she’s no longer a child.”

“Hah, says you. You didn’t want to become Emperor, you wanted to become a bodyguard for her.” His father says, laughing.

“Those were many years ago. Time has changed now. She is old enough to be outside with her friends.”

“Wonshik, there is still discriminates against you and your sister. Her going out might danger her.”

“What if I send a guard undercover with her? They would be able to protect her.”

His father sighs, looking down at his hands. “That would work. I just do not wish to see my daughter hurt… Sailor, please sail me back to the Dragon Guest House.”

The mundane stops the boat and makes it turn around, slowly sailing back towards the guest house where his father came from. They sail back in silence, his father not even looking at him. He has been angered and annoyed, the fact that his wish did not go in his direction has made him angry and offended. Wonshik has experienced this too many times throughout his life, especially during his teens and the first year of his reign. They reach the breakwater, where his father steps up and gives a small wave before walking up towards the house, letting the mundane sail out onto the water again.

“Where do they wish to go, Your Highness?” The mundane asks, quietly.

“Just … sail around a little more, sail in circles, please.”

The mundane does as asked, sailing perfectly in the middle of the lake while Wonshik stays seated, staring around him, his back slouching down as the cool breeze goes through. He is completely aware of his father disliking his way of ruling. Wonshik knew from an early age of his training, that his way of ruling would focus on different things compared to his father. His father did not focus much on the poverty of the country, ignoring it, which Wonshik disagreed highly with. 

Others are also looking at his way of ruling in a rather skeptical way, but he knows it is better for Hecury, it gains them more income and makes them stronger. What he is doing, is the right thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter! Introduction to Wonshik and how his life looks like. 
> 
> Most of the main characters have been introduced, we are just missing one, but he won't enter until a little later.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it!


	3. Chapter 3

“What don’t you understand by staying in bed?”

“Staying in bed and sleeping is for the weak!”

Hongbin feels like he is chasing around a child who refuses to go to sleep. He somewhat is. He stayed at the hospital after the doctors had helped Hyuk, making sure he was okay. Hyuk has never been on Hecury before, he has no idea how the planet works or where to go, Hongbin feels responsible for the bounty hunter, despite being completely against everything bounty hunters do. The doctors told Hyuk to rest and not move around as his leg is still in the process of healing and could cause even greater damage to him if he didn’t rest. That seemed to have missed Hyuk as he does all of those things. He walks around in the hallways, searching for food, stays up late and refuses to go to sleep.

“Do you really want your leg amputated?” Hongbin asks, each of them standing on opposite sides of the hospital bed.

“If it gives me a cyborg's leg, then yes please.”

“You’re absolutely insane.”

“You’ve known me for four days now, took you long enough,” Hyuk says.

It's true. Hongbin has been stuck at the hospital for four days together with Hyuk. Due to Hyuk being mundane and not registered in the Hecury system, he was in the lower priority. They patched him up and made sure there were no infections, but they first operated on his leg and removed a small metal piece inside of his leg, yesterday. Other creatures were deemed more important than them.

“I need to get to the capital before tomorrow evening when the Day of Embers start. Okay, it’s important.” Hyuk says.

“Is the person you’re going to kill there since you need to get there?”

“I don’t need to kill them, I just have to bring them back to that gang leader. I don’t kill anyone.”

“You’re really making a good case for yourself. But the doctor said you needed to rest.”

“Doctors lie, have you ever realized that? I feel fine, my leg is fine. I will go to the capital and then I’ll be gone from this planet, you won’t ever have to see me again.”

“I would prefer that to be honest,” Hongbin mumbles, pinching his nose bridge in frustration.

He lived a normal calm life before. This is the most adventure he has had for many months. Most excitement he gets out of his days is when a hunter is bothering him, accusing him of animal capture.

“Now, come on, let’s go.”

Hyuk grabs his bag and claps Hongbin on the arm, holding the door open for him. Hongbin just stares after him with wide eyes, his face slowly losing all colors.

“Me? I need to go with you?” Hongbin asks, pointing to himself.

“Yes. For multiple reasons. You have stayed with me until now, so why not? You’re fun to annoy. Another reason is, I don’t know this planet, you need to help me. Thirdly, I enjoy the company.”

“I stayed with you because I am currently only 40 kilometers away from my house. Tuham is over 500. I have a life, I have things to do other than be here. I am already worried about the animals at my house because I have been gone for four days.” 

“Animals are intelligent, they have survived on their own. It’s part of their instinct, come on. I’ll pay you part of the bounty I receive. I promise.” 

“What the fuck is wrong with you? No, I’m not coming along with you.”

Hyuk sighs, and leave the room. Hongbin is left standing alone. The door closes and he sighs with a heavy breath, letting his shoulders relax. Most of his animals are wildlife and are completely aware of how they get food themselves, and care for themselves, he’s just more worried about the hunters there. They always try and let the animals lose, even sometimes jump into his grounds to get them.

Leaving them for so long without him, some of them could be shot by the hunters. Hongbin can’t stay here for much longer, the worry is killing him. The door opens again, Hongbin half expecting it to be Hyuk again but it’s a nurse. The same nurse who helped carry Hyuk inside the hospital and onto one of the hospital bed. 

“Did the patient just leave?” He asks. His feline features are brighter in the natural light and the ears are pulled back of worry. He did everything for Hyuk, no matter what he asked for.

“Uhm yeah. He said he felt fine so he is gonna sign himself out. How much will it cost?”

“Oh, the reception still has your information and address, so it will be sent to your house.”

Hongbin can only imagine the cost of it. He went through an extensive surgery which took a long time. Hospital bills are always high and he barely makes enough to pay his taxes. The nurse goes over to the bed and starts cleaning it up, puffing the pillow. Hongbin stands still, moving his hand over his face, sighing. While Hyuk has slept on the hospital bed, he had to sleep on the chairs. His back hurts and he barely slept during the nights. Sleeping in a hospital is not as comfortable as sleeping with Toto curled up next to him.

“Is there something wrong, sir?” The nurse asks. Hongbin looks shocked at him. Whenever he is inside the city or inside public areas, most ignore him. He looks like an uneducated ignorant mundane as most of them do. No one barely ever shows sympathy towards him. It must be some kind of rule in the hospital or the ethical rules of a nurse. He has never been called sir either. He has been called many slurs but never sir.

“Yeah, just tired. I’ll leave-“

“You’re the mundane ... near the mountain with all the animals, right?” The nurse asks, stopping him in his tracks.

“Uhm yeah … do I know you?”

“No no, but quite a few of the hunters who come in here speak about you. Well, they mostly complain, but the stories are quite interesting. I’ve never met a mundane brave enough to stand up against such vicious creatures like you do.”

The nurse’s eyes shine brightly as if he is idolizing him, Hongbin stands still, his body numb. He knew he annoyed the hunters, but not to the extent of leaving a mark for them to tell stories of him. The nurse looks shy, fidgeting with his fingers.

“What kind of creature are you? I’m sorry, my knowledge of all kinds are somewhat small.”

“Oh no, it’s fine, most don’t recognize my kind. I’m a Panthera.”

A moment of realization comes to him. Panthera is shy and rather innocent creatures, near the bottom of the food chain as Mundane are. He must have experienced similar events as Hongbin did growing up. Slurs were thrown at them.

“I - I better leave. Some new patient probably needs this. Thank you very much for your help,” he says bowing deeply. The nurse smiles back and bow. 

He leaves the hospital room, closing the door softly after himself. He never realized hunters would tell stories about him, and that apparently another creature idolizing him for his dumb actions. He has always thought of idolizing as a form of a joke, never been interested in it. Why should he look up to someone and admire their actions when he can make himself proud? He lets out another sigh. 

At least he can go home now and rest. He desperately needs a nap before he starts working again, and he’ll have to find a way to earn money for the hospital bill. He should have Hyuk pay for some of it, but he has no way of contacting him. He gets down to the main floor, where a receptionist calls him over. He walks over to her, resting his arms on the desk.

“I need you to fill out this and sign here, for patient Han Sanghyuk. It’s for his leave, won’t take more than a minute.” The receptionist hands him the papers.

He gives his very basic boring signature on the papers, handing it back and groaning. He can’t wait to get home.

“Also, are you the owner of the Dherne outside?”

He groans, looking up. “Yes, why?” Technically he isn’t.

“Next time, please don’t bring animals to the hospital, also it is currently making a lot of noise, disturbing the patients.”

“Wha-” Hongbin turns his head out towards where Geno is. He is visible through the window, over at the trees where he rested through the night. Hyuk is at the animal, trying to make it obey him, yet Geno is refusing, jumping around and stomping its feet into the ground, pulling away from Hyuk.

Hongbin’s eyes widen, setting in a run outside towards Hyuk. Hyuk is yelling at Geno to calm down, but it’s obviously not working. Hongbin tackles Hyuk to the ground, landing with a heavy blow

“What is wrong with you?” Hongbin yells, sitting up and holding Hyuk down. “Are you trying to steal my Dherne?”

“No!” Geno roars at him, pulling the bridle out of his hand. “Okay, maybe, but I need to get to Tuham somehow and it’s not like I have money for a taxi.”

“So you came to the conclusion that stealing is better?”

Hyuk grabs onto Hongbin’s shoulders, gripping on tight and forcing him off, making him tumble down onto the ground. The dust and dirt fly around them again, Hyuk waving his hand in front of his face as he sits up, some dirt getting onto his cheeks, making it more defined.

“What else should I have done? Hitchhiked? Not like you were gonna give me a ride there.”

Hongbin sighs, sitting up. He covers his face in his hands, the dirt and dust falling onto his pants as he is starting to regret all of his decisions. He shouldn’t have stayed at the hospital, he shouldn’t have helped Hyuk to begin with. Geno comes over, away from Hyuk, on the side of Hongbin, laying down and placing his head near his feet, looking up at him. It’s windy. The silence between them currently is making the wind sound stronger than it actually is. How he wishes the wind would just pick him up and fly him away from this.

“Alright, I’ll ride you to Tuham, but … I want a portion of the money you get from your job.” Then he can possibly pay for the hospital bill.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you. How fast can this thing run?” Hyuk points down towards Geno, who lets out a heavy breath, some of the dust flying up into his face.

“Be nice to him and he will be nice to you,” Hongbin says, petting Geno’s head and holding back the laughter. “He can run fast, but I doubt he will make it for the Day of Embers ceremony. We will have to keep shelter during Midday.”

“Isn’t there a way to run while being under shelter for Midday?”

“If we take a detour through the forested mountain, yeah, but that is a little long-“

“Let’s go,” Hyuk exclaim, jumping up to his feet. He grabs Hongbin, pulling him up, shocking Geno. Hongbin takes a few seconds to find the balance of his feet. Geno is still laying down, looking suspiciously at Hyuk.

“You ride it,” Hyuk says, clapping Hongbin on his shoulder. Hongbin stares at him for a few seconds in disbelief, before sighing and going up to sit on him. Geno is not used to running with two on his back, meaning he won’t be as fast. If they run through the forest in the mountain, where the shade is the strongest. They will arrive late in the evening, but before the sun has set. Before the beginning of the Day of Embers main ceremony begins. The festivals have already started since this morning, but Hongbin has never been there.

He has never been to the capital before. Never has he left the mountain villages before. He will have to venture out of the area he knows, into new territory. Hyuk climbs up behind him and Geno rises up. Hyuk grabs onto Hongbin’s shoulders for stability while Hongbin is sitting perfectly. There’s no saddle, only the bridle. Everything else is at the home, and Hongbin can’t reach back home and then to the capital in time. 

He flicks his wrist, making the bridle snap. Geno sets in a run, out of the hospital ground and up towards the forests near the mountain ends. Midday will be there in a few hours and if they can make it to the forest before, they might even arrive at the capital earlier than expected.

+++

A child, coming to around half the height of Jaehwan runs past him with a stick where a dragon is on top of, a few others following after the small child. The dragon is a dark wine red with a golden sheen to it, breezing in the wind and held over the head of the children. Jaehwan stares after them, small embers flying out from around the dragon and its mouth. The smile does not leave his face as they run in between the legs of by passer, their laughter filling the streets.

The sound of children laughing brings him such an indescribable happiness. The joy in them is so pure. The lanterns will soon be lit for tonight, the main square turned into a performance area. The balcony of the Cabinet is set ready for the royals and the invited. Jaehwan’s family is invited to sit there, on the same balcony as the royals but not allowed to speak to them. Just sit and stare at the ceremony. A stage near the palace entrance has also been set up, decorated with red flowers and pits of fires that will be lit as the darkness descends upon them.

A cold breeze flies through him as he stands still and watches the children run. Do they have any knowledge of the war going on between them and another planet? As their parents chosen not to tell them, to keep their happiness in peace? The thoughts make the smile on his face slowly disappear, a sudden sadness and darkness looming over him. The suns have just barely started to set, it is too early for him to feel his. He tries shaking the feeling of him, starting to wonder over towards the stage where Hakyeon and his dancers will perform. 

Jaehwan hasn’t seen anything of the performance, Hakyeon making it clear that no one was allowed to see until the evening. Apparently, it is a new performance he has choreographed for a long time, ever since the Emperor asked him to perform. Jaehwan walks over towards the stage. It’s an oval shape, with red flowers running along the side of the edge. A lot of citizens worried that Alkils would come out during this time of the night, while they are celebrating, but the main square will be so filled with light, the Alkil might have enough light to take a normal shape.

Instead of hiding in the shadow, they will come out and join them in the festivals without fearing anyone of attack. A small whisper says his name. Jaehwan’s head snaps up, searching around after the voice who whispered his name, only for it to appear again, this time, over from the palace. One of the palace doors are open and Hakyeon is sticking his head, waving Jaehwan over.

Jaehwan relaxes his shoulders, a smile he has a to fake slowly being put on. He goes over, Hakyeon holding open the door for him. It’s a room inside the walls of the palace, a lot more space than Jaehwan expected. There are mirrors, costumes laying around on the chairs and couches, creatures wandering around and getting their hair done for the performance. He turns to Hakyeon and notices the costume. It’s all red and black, close sleeves made of silk and a lot of layering upon each other. It is very traditional clothing to Ceyphus.

“My, you look fancy,” Jaehwan says, his eyes moving up and down.

“Thank you, but you have to dress to impress, especially when it’s the Emperor whose eyes are on you,” Hakyeon says, going back to the chair in front of the large mirror.

“Are you nervous?” Jaehwan says, going over behind him as one of the nymphs starts covering his face with makeup.

“A little. It’s my first time performing this piece, in public, so always a little nervous. I hope it will be good enough for him. I have to perform four times, two solo stages and two group stages.”

“Have I seen any of them?”

Hakyeon keeps silent, looking up at the ceiling. The nymph is putting a new color on his face, one that is too light for his natural tone. It is not because Ceyphus is a much warmer planet, but Hakyeon just naturally has a darker skin tone. Jaehwan wrinkles his nose at the new color, the nymph blending it down onto his neck.

“You have seen … one of them. All the others are new. I hope you will enjoy them.”

“Well, of course, I will. Looking at your dance is a pleasure no matter what. You will have the entire city in love with you by the end of the ceremony.”

Hakyeon laughs and shakes his head. “That would be wonderful, wouldn't it? Ah, I wish the Empress of Ceyphus admired me as much as your Emperor. Can you believe, I am one of the most famous dancers on Ceyphus and have never performed in front of her. Others ask her why I am not on the performance list at special ceremonies or events.”

“Maybe she’s jealous.”

“Of what? Well, maybe when the new Emperor takes her place, I will receive the appreciation I deserve.”

“I hope so. You deserve it. Well after this, you won’t just be famous on Ceyphus but also on Hecury.”

“I perform in front of another royal before my own. Good Gods.”

The nymph is placing on a red eyeshadow on his lids. He closes his eyes, not speaking. Jaehwan understands his frustration, not being appreciated. He is the youngest of three children, and you would expect the youngest to be the most spoiled but no, he had the most to live up to. Both of his brothers received their warlock mark early in their teens, Jaehwan received his later. It made his parents believe he wasn’t worthy of the mark. One of their children, not being worthy of the warlock mark, degrading them and their entire family. 

He would have been disowned if he hadn’t received it. He has always been a little slower than his brothers, always a little behind. He sighs, placing a hand on Hakyeon’s shoulder.

“I better leave before I see too much. I also need to meet my family before gathering for the ceremony.” Jaehwan says.

Hakyeon doesn’t even open his eyes, his head completely still. “Okay, I will see you out there, and give a hug to your mother from me.” 

Jaehwan gives his shoulder a small squeeze before leaving the room, walking out through the door. In the time he was in there, the suns have set even more. More people are gathering around the square, a few already set up near the stage of it. He walks over to one of the tall lamp posts, leaning up against it as the fires are turned on. They burn a very strong dark red color, radiating a burning heat. The one near the end of the stage burns the strongest and tallest, burning over one meter high, the flames stretching its arms towards the sky.

Near the stage at the very front stands a tall lean man. He is standing near the door of where Hakyeon is getting ready. His hair is incredibly pale and white, making it difficult to look natural, having a slight silver tint to it. All black clothing. Something shines from him, but Jaehwan can’t put his finger on it. As if the body is fake as if something is wrong with it. The energy he can feel from it, there is something off.

All warlocks feel the energy of people, a sense of their soul slowly coming out of their bodies. Some would call it an aura, but Jaehwan has never liked that word. Their soul changes, depending on the person, their emotions and mental state. It can be a warm feeling one moment and a dark sad blue feeling the next. Hakyeon lets out a warm purple and charismatic feeling, one that becomes even stronger when he performs. It was what drew him to Hakyeon performing the first time, the unending amount of energy. But this man, the feeling is fake as if there is nothing there. As if he were to reach out and it would be empty.

“Jaehwan!” Someone calls from him. He turns around, staring over his shoulder. It’s his mother waving at him. Together stands his father, his brothers and their wives. All warlocks. The energy coming from it is so incredibly powerful, it nearly hurts his eyes.

He walks over towards them, smiling as he does. The fake smile again. He bows slightly to them as they greed, his mother taking his arm. His mother and his father are the only one he would say he is close to. Of course, he is close to his family, but not to the point of telling them the secrets he has. He would consider telling his mother maybe, but else no. It is a very neutral family relationship between them.

“We were talking about having a little bit to eat before going up on the balcony. Are you hungry?”

“A little, but not too much,” Jaehwan says.

“It’s because he is used to eating so little,” His brother says.

He doesn’t eat much, and he is the thinnest out of all the sons, his oldest brother being the heaviest. 

“Aw, you need to put on a little weight, sweetie.” His mother says, shaking his arm. “Come, let’s go inside and eat.”

+++

They have been running through the forest path for a few hours now. Midday was painful but not as painful and damaging as Hongbin feared. He feared their blood would start boiling and they would die or at least get hurt extremely badly. They only had a few burns and blisters on their skin. It hurt but they kept going. Standing still or going slowly was worse for them than running at a high speed. Geno has been running for hours with ends, and his pace is slowly starting to decrease. 

They are near the main gate of the city. Hongbin doubts he is allowed Geno with him inside the city. He is not exactly a small pet nor does he have an Owner brand on him. They reach the gate. It’s a large stone gate, carved with pillars. It reaches up for the sky, with gold paint around on it. On the very top is the name of the city, Tuham written in the ancient language of Hecury. It has been about 100 years since the planets agreed on a common language between them all. 

Ceyphus still has their original language, but it is mandatory for all to learn the same language, to make communication and trade easier between everyone. At the gate stands a few guards, wearing large armor and with weapons by their side. Hongbin makes Geno stops, pulling back the bridle. Geno shakes his head, panting. He has run a lot. Hongbin claps the side of his neck and pets him. One of the guards come over to them.

“How can we help you two?” The guard asks, friendly and calmly. A contrast from their heavy armor.

“We’re just here for the ceremony. Is there a place I can have to my Dhernes?” Hongbin asks. Hyuk just keeps silent, staring at the interaction, even trying to look at the surroundings.

“Yes, we have a stable over there you can place him in. Just step off here and we will put him there.”

Another guard comes over, taking the bridle of Geno. Geno sits down slowly for Hyuk and Hongbin to get off. They jump off, their feet touching the ground for the first time in hours. Hyuk stretching his legs, doing a squat and grunting. Hongbin stares at the gates. He can’t read the letters on the gate, but he knows what it says. The main gate is great and large, a mesmerizing sight to behold. The gold shines in the sunlight, seeming to have been built by crystals. Geno is lead over to the stables where a lot of other creatures also are. It is a safe place for him to be for now, until Hongbin can go home again.

Hyuk comes up next to him, staring at the gate as well. He does not seem impressed with it.

“That’s the main gate?” He asks, arms hanging loosely by his sides.

“Yeah. The first time I’m seeing it. Let’s go, before the ceremony starts. We have to hurry. The main square is far in,” Hongbin says, already walking in through the main gate, down the street. There is not a lot of creatures walking around, only closed stores.

They are all closed down for the ceremony and most creatures are most likely already at the main square, waiting for it to begin. Hongbin looks around, knowing they don't have a lot of time to waste. He can explore the city later. It is his first time inside the capital and from what he can see, the village his parents live in is nothing compared to the architecture and style of the capital. It seems like something out of his dreams. Bridges stretching over large bodies of water, cafes, and stores all around them. It’s not a skyscraper city, none of the houses are taller than four or five levels. The only thing that stretches somewhat taller is the palace they can see in the distance.

That is also where the main square is. Hyuk is right behind him, not even looking around and admiring it the same way Hongbin is.

“How are you going to kidnap this creature then?” Hongbin asks, to break the silence. The streets are empty, no one will hear them.

“I have a few different methods that will hopefully work. If one fails, I’ll just do the other one. The first one is to knock him out when he’s in his private hotel room. Shouldn’t be too hard.”

“Hm … doesn’t this make you … at all feel bad? You’re basically sending this guy into his own death.”

“I wouldn’t know if he is gonna get killed or not. I just know that the Ork doesn’t like him and wants him, so I am doing what I am paid for. My, this city is boring. I’m used to large industrial cities.”

Hongbin scrunches his nose at the comment, his brows drawn together.

“You said you were from Colia, right?”

“Originally Zork but yeah, currently live on Colia.”

Hongbin stops in his tracks, Hyuk stopping a few steps in front of him. Hongbin stands with his mouth slightly open, feeling his heartbeat going faster and the sweat running down his neck.

“You’re from Zork?”

“Yeah and I know about the war, but that’s between the emperors. I couldn’t give a shit that our planet's leaders hate each other. I make my own judgments. Come on, let’s go. We don’t have a lot of time.” Hyuk grabs Hongbin’s wrist, but he resists.

“Why did you move away? From Zork?”

Hyuk sighs, his shoulders falling down. “Because I wanted to get away. Zork was already on the brink of destruction when I still lived there, it’s a shit planet and I’ve always wanted to get away, so when I heard of this upcoming industrial city on Colia, I took my chance and went. Never regretted it. Now, come.”

This time, Hongbin does not resist. He knows there must be more to the story, but Hyuk does not seem to want to tell everything. He rushed through the explanation, seemingly in a hurry. Hongbin does not question it further but just walks alongside him, slowly getting closer to the square. The further they get into the city, the more lanterns are hanging from the poles, a few animals walking around freely. Hongbin’s eyes are immediately drawn to the Mueers walking around in the shallow water parts, their long pecks in the water searching for food. Their wings are tightly tucked into their bodies, showing a sign of calmness. Hongbin wishes he could stay and observe them further, but he doubts Hyuk would let him.

They cross a much larger bridge, walking over it and from there they can see the main square. There are large fire pits, flames standing tall in many meters and a large crowd surrounding what looks to be a stage. He has never seen so many creatures one place before, all gathered there together. Hongbin does know a little about the Day of Embers but he had no clue it was such a popular day. They reach the other end of the bridge and as they do, music starts playing. Hyuk immediately set in a run and Hongbin takes a few seconds before running after him, not wanting to lose him or lose himself in such a large crowd.

Hyuk runs over towards a truck parked near the end of the crowd, a few other creatures standing on it and watching as the music plays. Hongbin runs after him. He sees the features. It’s a large mix of different creatures, all once Hongbin has had bad experiences within the past. Something inside of him screams at him to stop running and run back to Geno. He would be able to make it home before sunrise. Hyuk reaches it and grabs the attention of them. He wants to scream at him to stop, to stay away from those creatures before they swear at him or even hurt him.

“Hey, my friend and I come from this tiny village, many hours away from here. We got delayed a little. Could we possible join you here?” He asks.

Hongbin stops, waiting for them to start laughing, swearing at them.

“Yeah sure, jump up. You guys thirsty?” one of the creatures asks. His skin covered in bright white lines.

Hyuk jumps up but Hongbin stays still. They didn’t swear at him, didn’t cuss at him, they were friendly to them. One of them reaches his hand down towards Hongbin, probably thinking he can’t get up. Hongbin flinches as a reflection and the creatures look wide-eyed at him, before extending his hand again. Hongbin stares at it, wondering if he is going to be killed by doing this if this is a trap. He takes the hand and is helped up on the truck.

“You came just in time. The Emperor is just about to begin.” One of them says, which Hongbin identifies as a Wratig, it’s six horns and gray skin with all sorts of weird patterns in black and gold scattered around his body.

The music is still laying over the entire square. Hongbin stares at the creatures. He hasn’t experienced this before. Normally, he is being spat at just for being a mundane. Maybe it’s different here in the capital. He shakes his head lightly. It’s four creatures, random ones. They were just lucky that they were nice and friendly. These four creatures do not summarize up the entire capital. The music suddenly comes to a halt and the flames surrounding the stairs become smaller.

The flames light up a balcony over near one of the elder houses. Up there sits the emperor together with the previous emperor and empress. Behind them sits Jaehwan and his family. His brothers are sitting with their wives while Jaehwan sits closer to his parents. The two other families of the Original Order, all wearing clothing to represent their family. Jaehwan leans back as the Emperor stands up, gathering the attention of the entire crowd. Hakyeon’s performance will start soon.

It is the first time Hongbin has ever seen the new Emperor. He remembers the news of the new Emperor taking the position, two years ago. He was visiting his parents and they were speaking of it on the radio. He does not look like how Hongbin expected him to. He seems so mundane but gives off a special glowing reflect. He is a half-breed between an angel and a mundane, something no one knew was possible. He remembers his father was disgusted by the thought of it, saying it was unnatural to have a half-breed creature as their ruler and was a disgrace to their planet.

The Emperor raises his hand and everyone quiets down. Only the sounds of the flames and embers are heard throughout the square.

“My people, my dear friends. Another year has passed, and as always, we shall celebrate. On this day, thousands of years ago, my ancestors came to this empty planet and lit a fire. A fire that represented new life to the planet, new hope. And this flame should never be let out. My ancestors, our ancestors build a civilization, a new place for creatures of all kind to be, in peace and harmony. I like to believe that our ancestors are watching us, from the other dimension they are in, with pleasure and happiness.  
Not only is Hecury a planet of peace, but a planet of rich history and diversity of all forms. Hecury is everything they wanted it to be and even more. And nothing of this could have been done without you, everyone who is gathered here. The workers, the warriors, the rich, the poor, the forgotten and the ones we shall never forget, everyone here today, everyone from last year and everyone from thousands of years ago, has helped in shaping Hecury and Tuham.” 

The crowd starts clapping loudly, Hongbin joining in. He is taken back by the power of the Emperor’s voice. It’s deep yet has a charm to it.

“A sight like this never fails in cheering me up. I am pleased to see the crowd of tonight. It pleases my heart and hopefully yours too. Now, I will not bore you anymore. This is a day of celebration, so we will start out this. Let the Day of Embers begin!”

Drumming immediately starts sounding. Near the end of the stage, at the very back is ten angels lined up, all drumming in the same tempo. Jaehwan leans forward, patiently waiting for Hakyeon’s performance to begin. The flames at the stage start rising again, the embers flying everywhere on the stage. The tempo of the drums speed up, Jaehwan’s heartbeat increasing with it. It hurts his ears but he knows it will soon be over. In less than a second, the drums stop and all the flames die. Leaving no trace behind, as if they were never there. The silence is hunting, a small wind blowing out through the entire crowd. Two fire pits are lit again, but with a much weaker and pale fire. A high note from an instrument is played and on the stage, lit by the flames is Hakyeon standing with the other dancers.

Jaehwan smiles, his eyes fixed upon him. A black drape is wrapped around his bottom face. The flames are behind them, giving them a dark silhouette, casting long shadows on the stage. The instruments keep playing the same tone, sometimes going a little higher as they all stand still. Then the drums start playing again and Hakyeon and four of the female dancers begin. Hakyeon stands center stage, moving with precise and sharp movements as the drums play with a fast tempo. Moving at a speed Jaehwan has trouble keeping up with. He wishes he was closer to the stage. Sitting so far away, it is harder for him to see every single detail. Watching Hakyeon dance is a similar experience as being overstimulated in pleasure.

Suddenly the drums stop and are replaced with a much smoother music. The flames all light up in the same weaker color and strength, giving the scene a white glow to it. White embers falling onto the stage as their clothing are exposed. Jaehwan sees the Emperor’s eyes widen at the clothing, the traditional clothing of Ceyphus. It is not anger in his eyes, nor disappointment, only surprise. He seems captivated in the performance just as everyone else is. The black silk around Hakyeon’s face is removed, as he walks into the front of the stage, the music becoming louder and more intense.

Hongbin stands still, his eyes wide as he watches the performance of the fairy. From where he is standing, he can see everything perfectly straight on. He has seen many beautiful things, but never has he seen a dance like this. The music slows down again, this time a woman starts singing in what Hongbin assumes to be Ceyphus native language. The fairy and the other female dancers are graceful, dancing around with the black silk in their hand, using it as a prop in perfect synchronization with each other. Hongbin looks over at Hyuk whose eyes are just as fixed to the performance. His eyes go back to the performance again, scared to miss anything.

Despite the women being barefooted on the ground, they are still keeping up perfectly with the fairy, not a single step was taken wrong or too late. The fairy is obviously the main focal point of the performance and Hongbin’s eyes are always drawn back to him and how he stands out. But the women are not backup dancers, they are not just there to fill up space, but to be seen and shown as much as the man in the center. The dance comes to an end, in the time of what seemed so short. The ending is the fairy and the dancers reaching out, forming what is suppose to be a flower.

Jaehwan can’t stop himself from smiling. A lotus flower. The symbol of Ceyphus, not something many would know of. Hakyeon obviously had to put some part of his own identity inside the dance. An eruption of cheers and applause fills the square. He wouldn’t be surprised if the guards at the main gate heard it. The Emperor stands up, everyone on the balcony following along, applauding Hakyeon. On stage, he gives a deep bow to the crowd and towards the balcony.

“Jaehwan, have you ever seen this performance before?” His mother leans over to ask him. She has to yell over the cheers.

He shakes his head. “No, this is a new one. I’ve never seen this one before.”

“You know him?” 

Jaehwan looks at the owner of the voice. It’s the Emperor, having turned around to look at him. He is older than the Emperor, but that means nothing when it comes to royalty. He is the one who has to show the uttermost respect.

“Yes, Your Highness. He is a friend of mine.”

The Emperor smiles. “Your friend is very talented. I am excited for his other performances of the evening. Please, give him my compliments.”

“I will, Your Highness,” Jaehwan says, bowing his head towards the Emperor, who turns around again, towards the stage.

Hongbin turns towards Hyuk, and Hyuk just continued staring at the fairy as he removes the larger cloak, revealing a much tighter traditional Ceyphus clothing underneath, all the female dancers leaving the stage. Hongbin grabs his arm, getting his attention.

“That was amazing. I didn’t know such things happened at Day of Embers.”

“That was really beautiful,” Hyuk says, seemingly very focused again.

“I wonder who he is, I’ve never seen or heard of him before.”

“He’s the one I have to kidnap.”

Hongbin’s eyes snap towards Hyuk again, looking for some sort of humor in his eyes. There is none. Only a serious expression of determination. Hongbin’s smile falls in an instant. He shouldn’t have come.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Something to note: in this world, the concept of sexuality does not exist, meaning you are attracted to whatever. There is no term for being only into male creatures or female creatures or non-binary creatures, it is all the same.

Hakyeon finishes the last performance, the applaud filling the main square once again. After each performance, the applause becomes louder each time. The sound of their cheers, their screams, the applause. He lives for it. He breathes for it. It fills him up to the top of his lungs, a form of euphoria that won’t stop. He takes one last deep bow towards the crowd and let the pulsation of their cheers wash through him, bow towards the Emperor who is giving him a standing applause. They exit the stage, the crowd still yelling. He performed in front of the entire population of Tuham, he has never performed in front of such a big audience.

He was not nervous, only until he was standing there in black, seeing all the creatures watching the stage, watching and judging. What if he had messed up? Did he mess up? It was the first time he has ever performed that routine, no one except him and his dancers would know. The cheers finally die down and he can hear the Emperor speak to the large crowd. He falls down onto the couch inside of the changing room, breathing out heavily and smiling up towards the ceiling. No longer just a performer on Ceyphus, but universal, soon he will be galactically. Perform in other solar systems, in front of creatures he could never imagine.

The inspiration and passion are burning in his veins. He wishes to go out and give another performance, his legs are burning to move. He places his bare feet on the floor and hisses in pain, immediately sitting up. He grabs his left ankle and pulls it up, seeing the blood underneath his heel. The choreo has him barefooted, meaning it can be more dangerous to perform on a stage of such material compared to a dance studio. He must have scraped his heel under the performance, maybe while walking around. 

He definitely didn’t notice until now. There isn’t a lot of blood and the rip is small but there is dirt around it and would soon become infectious. He moves his hand over his forehead, wiping his hair back. Dancing next to the fire pits was exhausting, feeling as if he was standing in the fire itself by the end. Especially the embers that were flying around them. He looks at his hand and sees the foundation having turned into liquid. It was all worth it. The blood, the rip, the ruined makeup, the heat from the fires, it was all worth it. 

He changes into full black clothing for the party now, placing a bandage on his heel and cleaning it before putting on his shoes. His dancers are also going out to celebrate. He sadly had to decline their invitations. Hakyeon already promised to celebrate with Jaehwan afterward. He and Jaehwan haven’t been out together for a very long time, despite both being very wild. They both become intoxicated fast but he does not need alcohol to have fun, maybe even find someone he can spend the night with. He bows goodbye to the others inside of the room, thanking them all before leaving into the bright square.

Hakyeon looks around the crowd for Jaehwan. There is so many, a few people dancing around on the square as the music plays. It’s loud drums and flutes playing. There are people all around him, dumping into him and walking around. It’s difficult to even walk in just a few steps, without having to dump into someone else and at least walking up against someone. A few creatures are standing much taller over him, overshadowing him. Why is the square so large? Jaehwan is nowhere to be seen, and as Hakyeon tries to walk towards the restaurants, but it’s impossible to get through the wall of creatures.

He turns and become face to face with a pale man. His hair is nearly white, a tint of silver in it. Tall and lean. He looks mundane but he doesn’t give off the feeling a mundane normally does.

“Hello, do-do you need help?” The man asks.

“Uhm… no, I just need to find my friend. Thank y - did you just speak Ayili?”

Ayili is the native language of Ceyphus, the language they learn from birth as well as the common language between all languages. It mostly only is spoken by natives of Ceyphus. Hakyeon didn’t even realize he switched to Ayili.

“Yes, I did.” The man says. “I learned it, many years ago, and I knew you were from Ceyphus, so I thought it would be more comfortable.”

“Oh … well, thank you, uhm. I really need to find my friend, but thank you.” Hakyeon turns around, pushing himself through the crowd. It was the last he expected, someone speaking to Ayili to him. He keeps looking over his shoulder after the white-haired man, but he is gone. He seemed young, around his own age. As he finally reaches the restaurant, he feels the magic surrounding him and sees Jaehwan coming towards him.

“I was waiting for you at the stage, you didn’t come,” Jaehwan says, putting his arm around Hakyeon’s shoulder. Hakyeon put his arm around his waist.

“Ah, I thought we were meeting over there. Never mind that now, where shall we go?”

“I’ve heard of this small party happening near the outskirts of the city, thought we could go here. A really nice place or so I have heard,” Jaehwan says, starting to walk together down the street, towards of the streets leading away from the main square.

Hakyeon is fine with going somewhere else. He doesn’t mix well with these types of festivals, and when he attends it either as a performer or then it’s to go somewhere else later for a different party. The music becomes quieter and the number of creatures is lessened. They are still walking close, Hakyeon constantly looking over his shoulder. He’s not entirely sure what he is looking after anymore. Maybe an Alkil since they are away from the light or the white-haired man.

“I met someone in the crowd while looking for you. He spoke Ayili to me.” Hakyeon says.

“Really? Was he from there?”

He shakes his head, “I don’t think so. He said he learned it, so I assume not. I was very shocked.”

“Ayili is a difficult language to learn, isn’t it? I remember you trying to teach me.”

“What do you remember of it?” 

“Hmmm, I remember Ohayō gaseyo, which means hello, and …” a small smirk starts playing on Jaehwan’s lips. “Agchan. Something you said a lot the night we met, or should I say moaned.”

Hakyeon pushes Jaehwan away from him, while Jaehwan simple laughs. His laughter is nearly soundless yet it brings such joy to him, making himself laugh. He shakes his head, walking faster towards the place of the party. Agchan means baby. Sometimes, Hakyeon doesn’t notice it, Ayili will slip through his lips. He speaks Ayili on Ceyphus with everyone, so speaking the common language can sometimes be challenging and messy, so during that night of sex, Ayili slipped through multiple times.

Jaehwan had asked the morning after that the different things he said meant, saying he found it sexy especially when he whispered it in his ear. Jaehwan continues on laughing, coming up to him and laying his arm around his shoulders, pulling him closer. There are a few other creatures walking in the same direction, maybe going to the same place as they are. The music is starting to become louder as they get near a building, near the outskirts of the city. He can feel the ground shaking with each beat of the music, his heart beating along to it. It’s already loud enough to damage his ears.

“It’s downstairs, in the basement of it. Come,” Jaehwan says, slowly taking his hand and guiding him inside the building. They immediately head for the stairs, going downstairs. Downstairs, it is dark and smokey, the smoke flowing through the air, covering his vision. Flashing lights of red, blue, purple and yellow are coming from everywhere, the music running through his ears, making it ring.

The crowd of creatures, pressing up against each other, dancing and sweating. Hakyeon can practically smell the arousal oozing off from everyone in there. The tension and desperation as the music and the heat fill the room. As he starts going over to a table near a wall, looking around. Jaehwan comes up to him as well, already having brought two drinks for them, placing it on the table.

“Do you often go here since you knew about it?” Hakyeon asks Jaehwan. Jaehwan leans in closed and Hakyeon repeats what he said, much louder than before. 

“A few times. I was just invited here, thought it would be funny. You see anyone you’re interested in?” Jaehwan asks, looking out over the crowd.

Here are more creatures than Hakyeon can count. He wouldn’t know where to start. The best way to begin is simply by going out and dancing, see whoever might approach him or if there is anyone catching his eyes. He takes a large slurp of his drink, feeling the bubbly taste dancing on his tongue, the firework going off inside of his mouth, the pink color straining his lips. Jaehwan stares at him with a smirk on his face, knowing what is about to come.

“Let’s go have fun. Don’t get kidnapped,” Hakyeon says, clapping Jaehwan on his shoulder before walking out onto the dance floor. 

There are a few creatures wearing neon bracelets, paint on their body, all glowing bright red, jumping off from their bodies. He ignores the pumping pain in his heel as he lets himself lose, dancing around the other creatures. He feels free again, the same euphoria from earlier. The feelings for forgetting all evil, forgetting all his worries as he just lives through the music and the alcohol. It doesn’t take long before he is dancing with someone else. A siren who doesn’t seem to stop moving her hands around his chest and his back, gripping his shirt for support.

He sees Jaehwan also dancing around, having found a Dralta to dance around with. A green-skinned creature with a flat snake nose and scales all around her body. He can smell the alcohol of the siren, and something else. Something he can’t exactly detect, but he knows she isn’t herself and will remember nothing tomorrow. Using someone while they are having a blackout is something Hakyeon tries to stay away from. She feels heavy in his arms as if her body is slowly becoming numb. As the song finishes, he kisses her shortly on the lips, tasting the strong alcohol and the permanent saltwater stuck to her lips before guiding her to the nearest chair.

He looks back towards Jaehwan who is no longer on the dancefloor. He can’t see him or the Dralta anywhere, most likely have moved somewhere else. He takes his drink from the table. His ears have become used to the pulsating music. He finishes his drink in no time. Compared to other creatures, he has a high tolerance but compared to other fairies, he has very little. While his friends get drunk after drinking nonstop for three hours, he gets drunk after an hour or so of heavy drinking. Something is crushed next to him, and he turns to look at it. He is surprised he can even hear anything, and then even from such a small sound.

It’s two creatures, an ork and a vunden sitting at the table, the vunden crushing some pills underneath his glass. It’s a silver form of powder in the dark, laid out onto the table. The smell is similar, something he has smelled before. The ork makes eye contact with him and chills run down his back.

“Ya want sum?” The ork mumbles.

Hakyeon takes a few steps closer, cautious as he watches the ork. “What is it?” 

“It’s called Serenity. It’s a drug imported from Zork, the only thing they can grow properly.”

He has heard of drugs being imported from Zork and Thara, one of the few exports they have. He has never heard of Serenity before. He shakes his head before leaving again, going out onto the dance floor again, ignoring the eyes staring into his back. He tried drugs when he was younger, shortly after he came of age, and he felt nothing. It had no effect on him, so while his friends were in a dream-like state, he was cleaning up from their vomit.

He walks up to the bar there is, leaning up against the counter and staring out. He really wonders where Jaehwan is and what he is doing with that Dralta. It wouldn’t be the first time Jaehwan hooked up with someone in an unusual place. Someone comes up next to him, standing nearly next to him, pressed up against his side.

“Can I offer you a drink?” the man asks. Hakyeon turns to look at him, and the white-silver hair is immediately recognizable. It’s the same man from earlier in the square, except this time he is speaking the common language.

“Oh, hello again … Did you follow me?”

“No, I was invited here by some of my friends, so I just came along with them. I lost them tho.” the man says.

“Ah, same for me. My friend has also disappeared. But, you offered me a drink?”

The man smirks, taking out a small metal hip flask, opening it.

“Wow, you’re cheap,” Hakyeon says, shaking his head and laughing.

“Nah, I would just be careful with the drinks from here. Never know what someone might have put in them.”

“And how do I know you haven’t put something in it?”

The man looks at the bottle, before looking up again. “Are you a germophobe?” Hakyeon shakes his head. The man takes a large sip of the bottle, drinking a lot before placing it down again. “There, if there was something in it, we are both gonna suffer.”

Hakyeon laughs, taking the flask and drinking from it. It’s weak alcohol but a refresher from what he had before.

“My name is Taekwoon. Jung Taekwoon,” Taekwoon says.

“Well lovely to meet you Taekwoon. I’m Hakyeon. What … exactly are you?”

“I’m a shapeshifter,” Taekwoon says, and Hakyeon internally slaps himself. That’s why his body seemed nearly fake as if there was something wrong with it. It’s a body he created himself from his original one. Shapeshifters can take the form of other creatures, either copy someone’s exact form or make a unique one. Judging by how perfectly proportional and smooth the mundane body looks, Hakyeon can guess that is it one Taekwoon created himself.

He takes more of the alcohol, watching around the crowd. His eyes scan around the room, seeing a few creatures taking this drug he was offered. Serenity. Sniffing it in through their noses. He even spots a few creatures drop it into drinks before handing it to others. He cringes on the inside, taking his eyes away from the horrible scene. Jaehwan finally reveals himself again, his hair a mess from whatever he has just been doing.

“Well, you seemed to have fun,” Hakyeon says as he sits on one of the bar stools.

Jaehwan shakes his head, looking towards the shapeshifter.

“You made a new friend?” he asks.

“I’m Taekwoon,” Taekwoon says, bowing slightly.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Jaehwan. Are you starting to get tired, or are you still looking for someone to sleep with?”

“Ya, just because I don’t sleep with the first creature I dance with doesn’t mean you can rush me,” he says, hitting Jaehwan on the shoulder.

Jaehwan laughs, but Hakyeon’s eyes wonder once again towards the creatures drinking alcohol with heavy drugs inside of them, without knowing. He knows he should do something. Go over and take away their drinks, tell them to drink something else or go to the hospital or home in safety. Over in the corner is a creature passed out. A satyr, with a demon checking if he is completely out, before lifting him off the floor and out of the basement. Hakyeon hopes its a friend of the satyr, someone who will bring him home. He knows that is most likely not.

“I think I am ready to leave now,” Hakyeon says standing up. Jaehwan follows suit.

“What’s wrong?”

“I just don’t like being there. It’s … gross and I overall don’t feel comfortable anymore. Come, let’s leave.”

He doesn’t wait for Jaehwan, or even Taekwoon as he walks towards the stairs, going up them and into the open air. He can finally breath what feels like fresh air and not air filled with thick smoke. The sounds are also much softer, an annoying ringing constantly going off inside his head. His throat hurts from having to yell to have a basic conversation and he feels as if the weight is three times as heavy. The evening is cold and welcoming, as well as the darkness surrounding him. Taekwoon is also coming with them out, going over to Hakyeon.

“Too much?” He asks.

Hakyeon puts his hand on his forehead to get the hair away. He just realized how sweaty he is. “Yeah, just … slightly scared and horrified.” He says. Jaehwan also comes up to him, putting his hand on his shoulder, pulling him close.

“I’m sorry I bought you there.”

“No, it was fun. Jaehwan I mean it, I enjoyed myself most of the time. I really did-”

“Hey, can you guys help us?” 

All three of them look up towards the owner of the voice. He is rather handsome, some would say a work of art, despite being mundane. Light blue hair which looks very fine and thin.

“What’s wrong?” Jaehwan asks.

Behind the mundane is another mundane, crouched down in front of a girl who is sitting up against the wall. Long hair falling over her shoulders. 

“She has passed out. Uhm… neither he nor I am from here, so we don’t really know what to do.”

Jaehwan walks over there, the blue-haired mundane showing him. 

“Do you know her?” Jaehwan asks, crouching down. Hakyeon and Taekwoon also walk closer. She is a young pretty girl, with blue hair, similar to the mundane. Both of the mundane shakes their heads.

“We found her like this,” says the mundane with the dark crimson hair, having a voice that reminds Hakyeon of a large dog. “I think she might have been drugged, she doesn’t smell much of alcohol, but she’s completely out.”

“She’s not mundane, she’s … something else, not entirely sure what. Maybe a half-breed. Support the back of her neck or it will hurt when she wakes up,” Jaehwan says, and the mundane puts his hand behind her neck, helping in lifting her face upwards towards them. Jaehwan let out a gasp as he sees her face.

“Oh Lord, oh no.”

“What’s wrong?” the mundane with blue hair asks, his brows furrowing together.

“We have to go to the police now, it’s the Emperor's sister,” Jaehwan says, as he hurriedly tries to make her stand up, but her body seems to be too heavy. The mundane with red hair stops him and picks her up in his arms, seemingly as if she was a feather.

“Show the way, warlock.” the mundane says.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They all finally meet each other but only if it had been under better circumstances

“Are you native to Hecury?” Hakyeon asks Taekwoon. They are sitting inside the hospital portion of the station, waiting for any form of updates on the young girl. Jaehwan said it was the princess of the planet. He didn’t even know Hecury had a princess, he thought the previous emperor only had a son. They just have kept her in hiding, or not shown her off as much as the current Emperor.

The hospital is quiet, with nurses every now and then walking past them, hurrying in their footsteps. Jaehwan went inside the hospital room with the doctor to discuss her conditions. He’s the one closest to the Emperor and has the most knowledge of how the system of Hecury works compared to any of them. The two mundanes, Hongbin, and Hyuk as they presented themselves, are standing over against the other wall. Hyuk having crossed his arms while Hongbin is squatting down, seemingly tired.

Taekwoon shakes his head. “No, I’m just visiting here for the ceremony. I’ve been here for a few weeks. Didn’t expect it to turn into this.” 

Hakyeon gasps, covering his mouth with his hands. “Oh right, you came with your friends. We took you away from them. I’m sorry.”

“Ah, no it’s fine. We were just going there together, they probably didn’t even notice I left.”

Hakyeon feels the quilt rise inside of him. Taekwoon probably just wanted an evening with his friends and now they are sitting in the hospital after having found the princess of the planet.

“What about you two?” Hakyeon asks, side-eyeing the two mundanes. He has no problem with mundanes, where he grew up they are lesser creatures as on any other planet, but he has never seen a problem with them. The only time he has ever seen them as in the middle or lower class areas or working inside stores on Ceyphus. The population of mundanes on Ceyphus is significantly lower compared to other planets.

“I am, but I live about 300 kilometers away from here, up in the mountains,” the mundane by the name of Hongbin says.

“I am from Colia,” Hyuk says.

Hongbin looks over at him in the corner of his eye. Hongbin knows Hyuk is lying. He technically also lied the first time they met, saying he was from Colia. 

“I’ve never met anyone native to Colia. What is there on Colia?”

Colia only recently started to be an industrial planet, meaning there haven’t gone enough time for any creatures to be native from there. Especially not mundane.

“An industrial city named Ashesh. A lot of companies and factories from different planets are setting up there. In like 100 years or so, it is going to be a very large city.” Hyuk explains.

“I’ve heard of that. Apparently, they are planning on it being the only city, the largest in our solar system,” Taekwoon says.

“It’s already a megacity,” Hyuk says.

A megacity is a city with over 10 million inhabitors there. It’s a term often used when describing all the capital of the different planets, and many other larger city. Hyuk must have been educated in such terminology. Many know the word, but not the meaning. Hongbin knew of it because of the free education all children on Hecury receives until a certain age. Afterward, parents have to pay and Hongbin’s parents didn’t have enough. The door next to them opens and Hakyeon straightens up as Jaehwan and the doctor comes out.

“She should be fine. It was a sleep drug, that if mixed together with a strong alcoholic will make anyone blackout, even a demon, so it does not surprise me she is in such a deep sleep, but there is no physical harm upon her. She should wake up soon.” 

“That makes me glad. Thank you, Doctor,” Jaehwan says, bowing thankfully to the doctor.

“If anything happens, just press the button and I’ll come, and there are nurses constantly walking around,” the Doctor says before leaving them all, Hongbin bowing but Hyuk standing straight up, looking down at the ground.

“Did he contact the Emperor?” Hakyeon asks, his legs having been pulled up to his stomach, appearing much smaller.

Jaehwan nods, putting his hands into his pockets. “They should be here soon. I’m scared of how this is gonna turn out. I’ve only met the Emperor a few times, but from what I’ve heard-”

The doors of the hall slam open with a loud bang, making Taekwoon let out a small sound of shock and Hakyeon’s feet fall to the ground. Hakyeon recognizes the hard features, as well as the uniquely colored hair. A sense of energy, being this close to him comes over Hakyeon and the others seem to notice it as well, as they all stand up with straightened back. It’s a sense of power with the guards following behind him, and an alien creature, called Tyvne is following behind him, running after him as the robes fly after him as well. The angelic energy is radiating off him.

“Lee Jaehwan!” the Emperor nearly growls, Jaehwan putting on a stone cold face as the Emperor reaches him. Hakyeon stands back, stepping away. The angelic energy nearly hurts his skin. “Where is my sister?”

“She’s in here. She’s fine,” Jaehwan says, nodding his head towards the room.

The Emperor immediately opens the door with force, going inside. There is a beeping sound coming from her heart monitor, a slow and steady heartbeat, similar to that of an angel. Jaehwan steps up to the door, looking towards the Emperor. The princess is lying peacefully on the bed, the Emperor next to her, moving his hand over her head, letting out a deep sigh. He mumbles something Jaehwan can’t comprehend before coming over towards him again. His eyes have become heavy and drowsy, the anger that was before visible is gone and his eyes are no longer dark, but large.

“What happened to her?” he asks towards Jaehwan. Jaehwan steps out of the way for the Emperor to exit.

“She was drugged with a sleeping pill. These two mundanes found her outside the club and asked for us to help,” Jaehwan says, pointing towards Hongbin and Hyuk.

“Outside? How? What club?”

“A club on the East side of the town. She was sleeping in the alleyway close by. She was groaning in pain, the only reason we heard her,” Hyuk answers, crossing his arms.

“And who are you two? You just so … happened to have found her. Why I might say they drugged her!” The Tyvne says. “I do not believe their story, Your Highness. One of them isn’t even from here-“

“And how do you know that?” Hyuk asks, defensive.

“Oh, I can smell it on you!” It snaps back at him.

“Zyx, please calm down. We can’t start pointing fingers at everyone. I thank you all for your help, I greatly appreciate it.” The Emperor says, bowing to each one of them. “Zyx, get the doctor.”

“But-”

“Now.” 

The sternness in the emperor’s voice makes the hair on Hyuk’s arms rise, standing high. It sounded deeper than before as if he went down two octaves. The Tyvne also seemed to have noticed as it bows before leaving down the hall, one of the guards following it. There is silence until it has disappeared around the corner and the Emperor left out a deep sigh.

“I apologize on behalf of my right hand. He normally does not act this way.”

Neither Hyuk nor Hongbin answers. Hyuk just gives a small nod as a way to accept it.

“Did the doctor say anything to you?” the Emperor asks Jaehwan.

“Only that it was merely a sleeping pill. A strong one, but that there is no physical harm on her, and that she will most likely wake up soon.”

He nods, crossing his arms. “I need you all to leave. Your help has been done, there is nothing more you can do here.”

“We understand,” Jaehwan says, starting to leave. Hakyeon and Taekwoon follow.

“You two, mundane. Please, stay here… I have questions I need answers for.” The Emperor says as Hyuk and Hongbin is also about to leave. They glance at each other, shortly, both of them having the same expression. Slight fear or confusion. They are the ones who found the princess, obviously, the emperor is going to ask them further about it. 

Jaehwan looks back at the two mundanes and doesn’t stop until they turn around the corner. He understands why they need to be further questioned, he’s just surprised the emperor is choosing to do it himself. Hakyeon walks next to Taekwoon, the shapeshifter. Jaehwan has met many shapeshifters and felt their energy, and all of them has something similar to them, something in common that makes them stand out. It’s the unending feeling of change, of multiple personalities, one moment it might feel like something and another moment, it will change.

Taekwoon’s feel different. It’s dark and sulky, with only a shimmer of light in there. 

“Taekwoon, where are you from?” Jaehwan asks, making them stop in their track. Taekwoon turns towards Jaehwan, seemingly not bothered by the question.

“Boanus, Arcana specifically.”

“That’s a water planet. Incredible you are not some form of ocean creature then.” Jaehwan tries to play it off as a joke.

“Yeah, there aren’t many but I am normally in the shape of water creatures when I’m not in my normal form. But somewhere as here, I prefer being in this form,” Taekwoon says, his hands moving to show off his mundane body.

Jaehwan nods, still not completely buying it. He has never heard of shapeshifters living on Boanus, or Arcana, an oasis city. He visited when he was very young. 80% of the planet is water, a few cities, including its capital, Arcana floating or on a mountain. Many cities are also underneath the water. He can see how a shapeshifter would survive, but that it would be a challenge.

They walk downstairs where the police section of the building is. Officers walking around dressed in black, wandering around or working. Jaehwan is the first one out in the cool night, Taekwoon coming afterward and holding the door for Hakyeon. The evening is cold and the sky is clear. They can hear music in the distance, people cheering and celebrating. There are also beacons littered around the city, all set to burn throughout the entire night. All other street lights have gone out, to emphasize the beauty and calmness of the evening.

Jaehwan stares up at the sky, hands in his pockets, as it sounds like Taekwoon is saying goodbye to Hakyeon. He shuts out their conversation, focusing on the sounds of the torches and the embers burning. It’s calming. The stars are visible, a few shooting stars flying across the sky. Hakyeon comes up to him, putting his elbow on his shoulder, also looking up.

“Seeing anything interesting?” He asks, pulling Jaehwan out of his trance.

“Looking for felicity,” he says, feeling his eyes clouding in.

“Taekwoon is leaving back to his apartment now.”

The cloud disappears and Jaehwan turns towards Taekwoon who is standing patiently waiting for him. He stretches out his hand, and Taekwoon takes it.

“It was lovely meeting you. Maybe we will see you another time,” Jaehwan says. Whether he means it or not, he’s not entirely sure. “I hope next time, we meet under better circumstances.”

“I hope so too. Bye Hakyeon.”

He and Hakyeon exchange a look and a smile between the two. And with that, Taekwoon leaves in the other direction, going towards the North side of the city. He’s not going back towards the club, where his friends might still be. 

“You two seemed to be talking well,” Jaehwan says, glancing at Hakyeon.

“He’s friendly and easy to talk to. What do you think?”

“I don’t have an opinion on him yet. I barely spoke to him… shall we go home for a drink?”

“Yours or my place?”

“Mine. I don’t wanna go to a hotel room. Come.”

Hakyeon and Jaehwan walk arm in arm, in the opposite direction of which Taekwoon went. Jaehwan doesn’t live in exactly the center, but he does live comfortably in his own apartment. They walk together over there in the cold late night.

At the hospital, inside the hospital room, Wonshik is sitting. He’s sitting next to the bed where his baby sister is lying, unconscious and drugged. He didn’t want to believe it when Zyx came running inside his room. He was getting ready to sleep, why he’s wearing his sleeping robes, he didn’t have time to change. Zyx had come running inside in a panic, barely able to form any words.

When he finally had, he immediately ordered the servants away and left at that very seconds. Without telling their parents. He has to tell them at some point, but he also knows their father will lock her inside their house for the rest of her life. She will never be allowed to leave again. It’s his fault. He was the one who said she could go. If he had refused and listened to their father, this would never have happened. She would have been safe, not lying on a hospital bed.

He should have listened to. Their parents have always protected them from the public, made sure no one would hurt them. Wonshik has gone out before to clubs and parties but never has he experienced this. Does this often happen? Is Hecury not as safe and secure as he thought? How much of this is happening to others right under their noses? He holds back a small gasp as he realizes what could have happened to her. Someone must have drugged her on purpose. To use her, for their own advantage. He immediately shakes his head, burying his face in his hands. 

Don’t go there, he tells himself. He can’t begin to comprehend those kinds of things. What would have happened if those two mundane hadn’t found her?

“Are you okay?”

Wonshik looks up, where one of the mundane stands. He stands up, nearly pushing the chair onto the floor.

“Yes, why wouldn’t I be? Why are you here?” Wonshik asks harshly. More than he intended.

“You’re crying. It’s … common decency to ask that when someone is crying. And just wanted to check on her condition. I see she hasn’t woken up yet.”

He goes closer to the bed, burying his hands in his pockets. Wonshik dries his eyes discrete before he looks at the mundane. He has tattoos over his neck and chest. Wonshik has tattoos himself, some his parents didn’t approve of when he got them. He was nervous himself of how the general population was going to respond to it, but there has never been a problem. The mundane looks young, younger than him but the hardness of his face and the dark eyes make him appear older. 

“She hasn’t. The doctor said she will soon. You were the one who found her, correct?”

“Yeah. My friend - and I, were on the way to a party when I heard her groaning in pain. I’m - I’m not from here, so we had to ask others for help.”

“Was there anyone around her when you found her?”

The mundane doesn’t answer right away. He doesn’t move, only slowly starting to shake his head.

“If there was, I didn’t notice. But it was in a street, someone could easily slip out.”

Wonshik nod in agreement, his attention switching towards his sister. “I didn’t know just things happened here. People drugging each other-“

“Have you ever been to a club?”

Wonshik’s eyes snap up to the mundane who is now wickedly smiling, seemingly entertained. The way he smiles makes him look young, maybe his real age even.

“I have, just, never seen this before,” he says, crossing his arms, looking anywhere but the mundane.

“It happens everywhere. Even in the safest of places. I’ve seen it happen in broad daylight. Just be happy it was us who found her.”

“I am, I’m thankful… what’s your name?”

“Han Sanghyuk, but I prefer Hyuk. You’re not my Emperor and I was never … properly educated in the royals…”

“Kim Wonshik. Who is your emperor then?

He shrugs. “I don’t have one. I’m from Colia. We have a president.”

Wonshik nods, sitting down onto the stool again, moving closer to the bed. Hyuk keeps standing for a little. They both stand in silence, the sound of the heartbeat monitor sounding in beeps every once in a while as she breathes slowly and gradually. Obviously in a very deep sleep. Hyuk sighs and Wonshik expects him to leave, but instead, he goes over to sit on the chair up against the wall, crossing his arms and leaning his back against the wall. Wonshik looks over towards him.

He has his eyes closed, steady breaths, but not sleeping just yet. He’s tired but not tired enough yet to fall asleep in an uncomfortable hospital chair.

“You would think hospital chairs would be more comfortable,” he comments, feeling the Emperor's eyes on him.

“Are you waiting for your friend?”

“Yeah, he’s being questioned. Afterward, we have to find out where to sleep. We’ll most likely have to sleep in the lobby here. We traveled from the mountain here since this morning, just to see the ceremony.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, we left on an impulse, we didn’t book anything,” he says smiling and laughing for some reason, still with his eyes closed.

“I might be able to find something for you if you want me to.”

This makes Hyuk open his eyes, halfway, looking over at Wonshik. He shakes his head, closing his eyes again.

“No, it's fine. I’m sure we’ll find something.”

“Hyuk, I insist. We have extra rooms in the palace for you and your friend.”

“And I insist, we will figure it out. I have slept worse places than a lobby.”

Wonshik sighs. He doesn’t enjoy the idea of his sister's savers sleeping in the lobby of a hospital because they have no other place to stay. He doesn’t like the idea of anyone having to sleep there. Their poverty percentage in Hecury is low, so few creatures live in pain, but those who do, he wishes they could help them more.

“Jenga is a good hotel to stay at,” Wonshik says, not looking over at Hyuk. Hyuk just starts laughing again. It’s a deep laugh, if he wasn’t smiling, it would nearly sound like a long cough.

“If it’s coming as an advice for you, I doubt we’ll afford it. Probably a very fancy and luxurious place.”

“Then let me pay for it. Just for a few days, until you and your friend has to return back home.”

“You won’t stop until I accept the offer are you?”

“Most likely not. You saved my sister, I stand in debt to you. It would severely hurt my pride if you turn down my offer.”

“Fine, you win … thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll make Zyx book a room for you there, the royal suite should be available-“

“Why you have to make it so dramatic? Can’t you give us a normal suite and not the royal one? We’re from the mountains 300 kilometers away from here, it’s already too fancy that we are entering such a hotel.”

Wonshik just stares over at Hyuk. He’s never had anyone snap at him like that. He wouldn’t even say it was snapping, but it felt different to how creatures normally speak to him. Hyuk speaks so casually, so laid back as if he has all the time in the world. He said it with such dialect too. Wonshik nods, mumbling an okay, looking back at his sister again. He’s surprised by how long it takes for them to question the other mundane. He doesn’t know his name.

Hyuk is playing with his fingernail, biting the skin around it. He never liked biting nails, but he does have a tendency to bite the skin around it very often. His skin is dry, there are cracks and he often bleeds from them. It’s difficult. Having to lie so much. He doesn’t mind saying he’s from Colia. He’s lived there for four years now, it is his home now. Zork never felt like a place he belonged to. He was spat at, kicked around as if he was a toy, only because he was mundane. In Ashesh, no one seems to really care. 

Of course, he lives in the more populated part of the city, where it’s most educated and upper-class creatures and they don’t care about mundane, he has only ever experienced the discrimination when working. Creatures judging him if he can do the job right. There aren’t many bounty hunters in the city, so they don’t have many options.

The door opens again and Hongbin looks in, first seeing the Emperor. He mumbled an apology, before spotting Hyuk and coming inside. The Tyvne stands in the door, looking displeased and annoyed, but with that type of face, it’s difficult for Hyuk to read it since it doesn’t have much of a face. 

“Did they also tase you?” Hyuk asks.

“They tased you?” Hongbin asks, eyes going wide. Wonshik also sits upright, clearly shocked by this news. Hyuk just starts laughing. It’s louder, much louder, a smile spreading across his entire face.

“No, but the reaction from you was worth it. Shall we go?” He stands up, fixing his clothing. “Wonshik was so kind to offer us a room at a hotel. Jenga hotel right?”

“Yes, correct. Zyx, please go call the hotel and tell them to prepare for a suite for Han Sanghyuk and …”

“Lee Hongbin,” Hyuk says before Hongbin gets a chance to.

“Your Highness isn’t this a little too much. A suite at Jenga Hotel?”

“Zyx, please order a suite at Jenga Hotel, now. Level 5, please.”

Zyx sighs silently before leaving to make the call to the hotel. Hongbin looks at Hyuk, who is just smiling, grinning. 

“Can we maybe… come back tomorrow to check up on her?” Hyuk asks. It’s a risky question, whether the emperor even wants them back. Wonshik stands up, adjusting his robes.

“Yes, you’re more than welcome. Just come within the visiting hours.”

“Thank you and thank you for your help,” Hyuk says, bowing and Hongbin bow as well, showing their gratitude.

They bid the emperor goodbye and leave out of the hospital room, closing the door carefully. It’s long past 2 am in the night, close to 3 am as they walk down the hall. Meeting the Tyvne on the way there. It informs them that their suite has been booked and they just need to mention their names at the reception. It says with a cold emotionless voice, leaving hurriedly again afterward, towards the emperor. 

It’s very cold outside, the temperature has dropped drastically. Hyuk holds around himself, forgot he is only wearing a short-sleeved shirt and forgot his jackets at the crashed ship. Hongbin isn’t wearing something against the cold either, but it doesn’t seem to bother him as much.

“Come, I don’t wanna stay here for long. Where is that hotel? Jenga hotel?”

“I’ve never heard of it. It’s probably in the city square, let’s go there first… how did you convince the emperor to give us a room in a hotel?”

“I didn’t. He insisted, for saving his sister and all. At first, he wanted us to stay at the palace, I said no to that. He didn’t give up, so at the end, I just accepted the hotel. It’s better than sleeping in the lobby or outside.”

Hongbin doesn’t answer that. He keeps quiet as they walk through the now quiet streets. The torches are still burning but only barely enough to show them the road. All the music is gone. Hyuk looks around the streets as they walk. He didn’t get a chance too earlier. Too focused on other things. The reason they went to that club was for the dancer fairy. Hyuk wanted to see if he could somehow drug him in one way or another, give him a blackout and then rent a ship to fly back to Ashesh.

But the princess came in the way. Neither of them did it to her. What they told was true. They found her like that, unconscious and groaning in pain. Whoever did it must have wanted to get her. Drugging others happens very often on Zork and Colia. He never went out one evening without seeing it happen. When he was younger, he just turned his back to it, nowadays he tried to stop it. Switch drinks around, tell the creature in some form of way, anything that might stop it from happening.

As he looks around, he notices one thing. How clean it is. Ashesh is an industrial city, there’s a lot of smoke, cloudy weather due to the planets climate and it’s normally very grey and dirty there. Here, it feels more alive. Plants and trees standing around, water running through. He can’t find any form of littering. On Zork, it was dirtier. Trash bags outside, dirty rivers, he’s surprised the planet survived for so long. His father told him the planet only became like that after the emperor from two generations back had died and the brother had to take over.

Their new of ruling ruined everything about Zork and is not the shithole it is as Hyuk would describe it. They reach the square, the palace lit up by flames on the roof and many buildings surrounding using natural flames as well to light up their signs or buildings. Hongbin turns in small circles around, before pointing.

“Over there, Jenga Hotel.”

“I said it was in the square, let’s go.”

It’s larger than the other hotels, taking up more space but it around the same height. It’s white with a tower going further up where a balcony also is. Inside, the lobby is mostly white and silver, white wood, and white flooring. It’s brightening to the overall room but hurts their eyes coming from nearly complete darkness. The receptionist is helpful and gives them the keys to the room, without saying anything towards them, just wishing them a lovely evening.

The hotel room. Hyuk asked Wonshik not to give them the royal suite, and he didn’t, but he can’t comprehend how the royal suite must look if their suite is like this. It’s a multiple numbered room, with private kitchen, two baths, one for each room, a large living room and dining area and a balcony showing into the garden of the hotel. The room is a burgundy color, mostly made of fresh wood, paintings hanging from the walls. Both of them walk around, neither of them being able to express their emotions in words.

“My god,” Hongbin says, sitting down on one of the couches. “This… this is for royals.”

“It’s not, I asked him not to give us the royal suite. This is apparently the suite for ambassadors,” Hyuk says, looking at the small note of information near the entrance.

“I’ve never seen anything like this. I wish I could take pictures of all of this.”

“Maybe tomorrow. I’ll head to bed, goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Hyuk walks into one of the bedrooms. It’s large, the same burgundy color on the walls. It’s a king size bed, with about five pillows on top of. He doesn’t take in the rest of the room, simply kicks off his shoes and pull off his clothes, falling down onto the soft bed. As he hits, he hisses and rolls over onto his back, looking down. The stitching on his thigh is red and a few have gone up. He sighs, dropping his head back onto the bed. Maybe he can ask a doctor tomorrow to remove it. He crawls in under the blanket and immediately falls asleep. He didn’t realize how tired he was until now, falling into a deep slumber.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You have a hickey, on your shoulder. I forgot I gave it to you,” he says, winking before turning around to leave again.

Jaehwan wakes up the day after, but stays in the bed for a few minutes, just resting. Basing on the sunlight shining in through the curtains, it must be early morning. He groans and nuzzles closer to the warm body next to him. The hand of the person goes into his hair, playing around with it. Softly moving their fingers through it, touching a few strands of hair. He knows it’s Hakyeon, his soft touch and breath are very distinct. The blanket is just covering them enough. Jaehwan slowly opens his eyes, breathing out heavily into his neck.

“Good morning,” Hakyeon says in a lazy morning voice.

“Morning. How long have you been awake?” 

“Half an hour or so,” Hakyeon says, kissing his forehead. “We didn’t do anything, don’t worry.”

“I know, I would have noticed if we had.”

They had come home and Jaehwan had served drinks to both of them. Jaehwan has always had low alcohol tolerance, never been able to drink a lot, not compared to Hakyeon at least. It didn’t take long for him to become tipsy and for both of them to start kissing. That’s where they often end up; making out. They have never had sex with each other since the first hook up many years ago. Even if both of them were drunk and were naked in front of each other, the chances are small of it happening.

Many would define their relationship as being a couple without sex, but if they ever do anything with each other, it’s only when one of them is drunk. Jaehwan stays cuddled up to Hakyeon, his face inside the crook of his neck, breathing in the morning scent. Hakyeon rests his head on top of Jaehwan’s, playing around with his hair, moving his fingers through it and touching it softly. It’s been a long time since Jaehwan has woken up like this. Next, to someone he adores, someone he loves, and not just a one night stand.

It’s something he realized yesterday at the club. The Dralta he had been dancing with had dragged him out in the back. Jaehwan two years ago would have had her up against the wall in two minutes, but yesterday, he was so hesitant and he ended up not doing anything with her. Only making out. Maybe he’s becoming too old. Seeing both of his brothers happily married, it makes him feel a form of greed inside of him. He wants that. He wants someone to be with, wake up next to, kiss and cuddle with. Someone he can enjoy life with.

“Do you want me to go make some breakfast?” Hakyeon whispers, dragging him out of his thoughts process. Jaehwan looks up at him, resting his chin on his shoulder, pouting slightly, as he nods. “You stay here then.”

He lays Jaehwan down onto the bed, pulling the blanket further up. Hakyeon crawls out, picking up some sweat pants and a shirt in the process. It’s all Jaehwan’s but it will just be somewhat loose on him. Jaehwan lay his arm over his eyes, closing his eyes underneath it. Even if he hadn’t closed his eyes, the dark sky covering them would have made him blind, but only for a few seconds before another world appears. No one is quite sure how it works, but magical creatures can see other worlds inside of their eyes, some say it’s another paradise, others say its a different dimension.

Jaehwan turns inwards to look at whatever world he sees whenever he is tired, stressed and need to calm himself down. It’s relaxing. It’s like listening to music for some, meditating for others. He can only have ideas of whatever he is seeing, a large planet with many trees, waterfalls and creatures and animals he has never seen before. The world first appeared to him when he was very young, a few weeks before he received his mark. He originally thought it had been a dream, or that it was his imagination until he was told. 

It’s not just animals there are there, but also civilization, skyscrapers, all around, beautiful buildings and temples. Whatever the paradise is, he wants to find it. He does not believe it to be another dimension, but another planet, in a different solar system. He has tried describing it to others, astronomers, historians and even tried to draw the world out for them, but no one knows it. No one knows what world it is.

“Jaehwan… Jaehwan,” a voice says, calling him back. The dark sky disappears, the world disappears and when he opens his eyes he is back in his own bedroom again, looking over at Hakyeon who is sitting on the edge of the bed, food on a tray table.

Hakyeon isn’t looking at him tho.

He is looking around, staring around the now very dark room, forming a night sky. There are stars on the wall, astrology signs, shooting stars and planets in the background. Three suns in the very middle. 

“Huh, I created our solar system,” Jaehwan says, sitting up. 

Hakyeon is looking around in awe. The stars are golden, shining brightly, all surrounding them. Planets flowing around moving according to their ring. One of the planets, Ceyphus flies past Hakyeon. It’s only the size of his hand, as his flies past his face. It’s a speed up version, showing the days of the planet in just a few seconds. Most planets have the same day to night cycle but only a few exceptions of a few hours. The stars and the planets shine brightly in the room, giving everything a dreamy look, a few stars circling around Hakyeon’s head and Jaehwan’s eyes.

“I often forget what you are capable of. What you are able to create… It’s … magnificent,” Hakyeon says, still looking around.

It’s so quiet. The space they live in, their solar system is quiet, only the sound of the flames of the suns burning. 

“It’s calming. Sometimes staring into nothingness and the void is the most calming. Most would find it scary, seeing all that space, not knowing when it ends or where it begins or how we got here. I find it beautiful … appeasing.”

“It’s scary I would rather say. How dark it all this.”

“It’s never really dark. Even if the suns go out,” as he says, the suns slowly start dying, becoming empty, the flames disappearing. “There will also be a light in the distance.” The stars surrounding them shine just as brightly as before. It’s not as bright as before, but in a way, it makes it more calming. The soft lights, the starlight flying around them.

“There is never a sky without a star.” 

It all starts fading away, the planets stop moving and everything turns into a powder that twirls around in the air for a moment before descending into nothingness, the room lit up again by the natural sunlight from outside. There is a smile on Hakyeon’s face as he turns towards Jaehwan.

“Why did you need it?” He asks.

Jaehwan shrugs, looking down at his mark. It’s these marks that give him the power to do these creations. “Just thought maybe it would look pretty for you. As a surprise,” he lies.

Hakyeon’s smile disappears as he lifts his hand up to Jaehwan’s cheek, holding his palm against his cheek. Jaehwan leans into the touch, closing his eyes as Hakyeon’s thumb slowly caress it. Hakyeon sighs.

“Alright then, tell me when you’re ready. Let’s eat for now… I wanted to make you a traditional Ceyphus breakfast, but you have none of the ingredients for it.”

“I tried a traditional Ceyphus breakfast when I was there for the first time. They served it at the hotel. I didn’t like.”

“Yeah, but you have never tried it when I make it. The hotel one is awful. Maybe after visiting at the hospital, we can go out and buy the ingredients.”

“Wait, visiting the hospital? You want to go back there?” Jaehwan asks, mid-crew of some of the bread. Hakyeon takes some of the food with the spoon, nodding as he eats it. Jaehwan waits for an explanation, watching him with large shocked eyes.

“I just thought we could go and see how the princess is doing. I doubt the Emperor will cut off our heads of for that.”

“Is that shapeshifter, Taekwoon coming?”

“It was his suggestion so yeah, I would highly assume so. Don’t you like him?”

“I haven’t had time to get to know him. Maybe I should today since you have taken an obvious interest.”

Hakyeon starts coughing, choking in his food, while also laughing. He continues on for a few seconds, before finally being able to speak again, his eyes teary and his face turned a little pale. Jaehwan takes another bite of his food.

“I am not … interested like that. He seems nice.”

“Let me ask you this. Do you wanna sleep with him?” 

Hakyeon hesitates, not answering right away, as if he has to think about it. He holds the glass of water up to his lips, keeping it there as he stares into the empty space. He finally looks up at Jaehwan, confident eyes as he shakes his head.

“No.”

“Liar, you hesitated. You want him.”

“Fine! I do. Or I wouldn’t mind it, his mundane body isn’t… bad looking,” Hakyeon says, collecting the different things onto the tray and lifting it up before Jaehwan can finish.

“Ya!” Jaehwan yells, jumping out of the bed in only his underwear. Hakyeon is already in the kitchen, washing the plates and glasses with the tap water. “I wasn’t done.”

“You should have eaten faster. We need to leave, so get dressed. I’m gonna borrow some of your clothing.” He walks past Jaehwan, air drying his hand. Jaehwan looks at the leftovers food. It’s barely anything and nothing worth saving.

He feels a wet finger near his shoulder, and he yelps, turning around towards Hakyeon.

“You have a hickey, on your shoulder. I forgot I gave it to you,” he says, winking before turning around to leave again. Jaehwan reaches over, searching for the hickey, running over to the mirror at the entrance.

He twists his shoulder and neck into an uncomfortable position to see the red mark on his shoulder. It’s large but nothing that he won’t be able to cover up with his clothing. He curses Hakyeon inside of his head. Now that is going to be stuck on his back for a little while. He must have done it after he blacked out. Clothes are thrown at him, turning over to look at Hakyeon standing fully clothed in some of Jaehwan’s own clothing. Pants from a few years ago that just fit him with a pale brown shirt tucked into the pants.

He points towards the clothing, indicating for him to hurry up. Jaehwan takes it without even looking at it, walking past Hakyeon with a sulky expression yet Hakyeon just smiles sweetly at him.

+++

Wonshik stayed at the hospital. They offered him a bed to sleep in, an empty hospital room they know would not be taken up during the night, but he chose to stay with his sister for the night. He made Zyx go fetch him some other clothing for the next day. He showered and changed. It’s more casual, less royal clothing Zyx picked up. He must have looked insane to some, storming inside the hospital in the royal nightgown. It’s probably the first time they have seen any of the Emperors or Empresses act like that, but he was simply filled with so much anger and fear, he did not care what he looked like.

Zyx made sure no news reporter would figure out, silencing all news station from speaking of this until Wonshik has allowed them to. He probably won’t allow them. It’s not something the public has to know, not another reason for them to critique his sister. He walks into her hospital room, his hair still slightly wet. There is a nurse inside, and his sister is sitting upright, on the bed, as the nurse puts the tray table onto the bed. She has more color in her face now before it was pale and cold, now the natural blush is back and her eyes seem larger and more open, more alive.

He steps inside and that’s when she notices him, the smile turning into shock and then guilt. She looks down onto her hands, folding together in her lap, as the nurse bows before leaving, closing the door after her. He doesn’t say anything right away. He just walks over to the chair next to her bed, sitting down. She still hasn’t looked up, refusing to look him in the eyes. It’s completely quiet inside the room, no windows are open for the wind or the sound from outside to enter, and even the monitor machines have been turned off.

“I’m sorry,” she says quietly, still looking down. Her voice is hoarse but still understandable. Wonshik sighs.

“Are you aware of why you are here?”

“Yes.”

“Do you understand why I am annoyed?”

She doesn’t reply. She keeps quiet. Wonshik looks over towards her, her hair fallen in front of her face, covering it.

“Do you?”

“Yes, but just because I went out with my friends doesn’t make it my fault. I did not know it was going to happen, it’s not like I was asking for it.” She says, angered now.

“I am not putting the blame on you. I am not saying it was your own fault. I am saying you need to be more careful next time … I should have told you what to do at such parties, but I did not know you were going to a club. I thought it would be a house party. Next time - if there is ever going to be a next time - never put away your drink, always keep it, and if you do accidentally put it away, get a new one.”

“I did all of that. My friend told me that, and I did. I never took my drink out of my hand, I don’t know when it happened.”

“Okay, tell me everything that happened there. Everything you remember.”

She starts explaining, with as much detail as possible. Explaining how she never let her drink leave her hand, they would go together and watch the bartender make their drinks stay to a certain area, near the back end of the club where the couches were for them to sit. It doesn’t sound anything out of the ordinary. How she suddenly felt nausea, a sickening feeling in her stomach and as if everything became a blur.

“Maybe someone put it in while you weren’t watching. Are you sure you never let it out of your hand?”

“Yes, I’m sure. I promise. There was a couple of guys speaking to us at one point, but they weren’t near me. Or there was at least someone in between me and the guys.”

“It might have been them then. If there was no other way. Gosh… I never expected this is to happen here,” Wonshik says, covering his face in his hands, leaning back in the chair.

“Have you told Father yet?”

He shakes his head, still covering his face. He knows he’s gonna have to soon. He wouldn’t be surprised if they already knew if Zyx told them when he didn’t greed them this morning. There are no meetings luckily, they were all canceled for the Day of Embers. Today there is a festival for younger children and young teens, for them to celebrate in their own way.

They would probably have been here by now. By the way, their parents were so protective of them, he wouldn’t be surprised if they came as soon as they heard. It knocks on the door, and Wonshik stands up in fear of it being his parents but it’s just the two mundane from yesterday, Hyuk and Hongbin entering. He breathes out relief, sitting down onto the chair again.

“You look tired,” Hyuk says, coming over.

“Hospitals aren’t comfortable to sleep in.” 

Hongbin is looking over at his sister, who is sitting still, looking down again.

“How are you feeling? Any better?” He asks her, making her look up with large doe eyes.

She nods.

“These are the two who found you. They brought you here together with a few others.”

She bows her head down, holding her hands onto her chest over her heart.

“Thank you very much. I’m forever grateful to both of you.”

“Of course. Also, thank you very much for the hotel room, we highly appreciate it,” Hyuk says towards Wonshik.

“No problem. Is there anything else I can do?”

“Oh no, we will most likely be leaving soon again. You have to go back to your animal farm right?”

Hongbin nods his head, turning his head around the hospital as if it’s his first time seeing it. Wonshik notices the tattoo near his jaw. Two triangles overlapping each other. It’s small but noticeable. It’s normal for any creature receiving tattoos nowadays, even Wonshik has them.

“Uhm…” Hyuk says out loud. Wonshik looks up at him, seeing him pointing to his forehead with a confused glance. It takes him a few seconds to realize what he means. He moves the side of his hand over his forehead where his head decoration normally is. It has faded and smeared over his forehead when he slept. He completely forgot it was there. It’s a small red forehead decoration that is painted on whenever he has an appointment as the emperor such as yesterday for the ceremony.

His sister hands him a piece of paper, which he takes, cleaning off the last bits of it.

“I’ve never seen any Emperor or Empress have such a thing before,” Hyuk says, another obvious sign that he is not from this planet.

“It’s something only the royal family of Hecury does. It’s a form of decoration, like a piece of jewelry. We have to wear it with honor. How come you didn’t say anything?”

“I didn’t notice it,” his sister says apologetically.

It knocks on the door again, Zyx coming inside. He side-eye Hyuk and Hongbin before focusing his attention on Wonshik.

“Your father has arrived, Your Highness.”

Wonshik groans, leaning back in the chair again. His sister’s face has become pale, her eyes widen. 

“I’ll be out in three minutes. Show him to one of the meeting rooms,” Wonshik groans, staying seated. Zyx nods, leaving the room again.

“What are you going to say?” his sister asks, her voice weaving.

“I don’t know… I’ll figure it out.” 

He stands up, and already before taking the first step, he wants to sit down again. His father is going to blame the entire thing on him. He thanks Hyuk and Hongbin for stopping us, before leaving the room, the two of them as well, to leave his sister to rest. She will need it before their father starts lecturing her. Zyx shows him over to the room where his father is in, and he takes a deep slow breath before entering.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you enjoyed it. More things will happen further on, but do tell me what you think of it so far.
> 
> If anything else, you can also message me on twitter @zeze_moonlight I'm more than happy to talk to any of you!


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